


Falling In Love With Reyaansh Singhania

by BornWeird



Series: Friends, Sisters, Weirdos [1]
Category: Dil Dosti Dance
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/M, Kriya and Swayam are siblings, Kriya and Taani are cousins
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-10-23
Updated: 2018-06-14
Packaged: 2019-01-21 18:35:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 22
Words: 126,191
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12463509
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BornWeird/pseuds/BornWeird
Summary: Three friends, best-friends, practically sisters. Self-proclaimed weirdos who you'd need the jaws of life to separate from one another. Until they fall for the same guy. After that, all hell breaks loose. Follow Kriya, Taani, and Saara on their journey of... FALLING IN LOVE WITH REYAANSH SINGHANIA





	1. Meet The 3Js

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, I know a lot of people kinda' don't like the whole "insert-name-here's POV" thing that a lot of writers, including myself, use, but it's easier that way on the Internet because this isn't an actual book where the transitions are much smoother. Oh, and a few things to clarify, Kriya's only two months older than Taani, but Taani very lovingly calls her 'di' because they have that big sister/little sister dynamic. Sharon, on the other hand, is a year older than her cousins, so it makes total sense for them to be calling her 'di.' Also, Vrushika and Arjun are 100% my OCs. Oh, and before I forget, 'maasi' is the word in Hindi for maternal aunt, and since it's a word that I will be using frequently, I figured I'd mention what it means.

* * *

Saara's POV

"That is total bullshit!" my best-friend Kriya practically screeches in her cousin's face.

"No, it's not! Finn Rider, whose real name is Eugene Fitzherbert by the way, is the best Disney prince ever! Along with Kristoff of course," counters her cousin Taani, my other best friend.

"Taanu, you're so wrong. Aladdin and Li Shang are the best." Kriya then flicks Taani on the forehead for a good measure. Fuck.

"Did you j - di!" Taani she lunges at her cousin. Double fuck.

And where was I while this tigress fight - yes, tigress fight; they aren't like little wittle kitty-cats, they're ferocious tigresses - was going on? Well, I  _was_  sitting very comfortably on their big comfy couch, but currently, I'm face-first on the floor due to my two best-friends trying to kill each other.

"Guys!" I shout while tearing the two away from each other, finally gaining their attention. "Can we please just agree that Prince Eric was the worst Disney prince ever and just watch the damn movie? And how did this stupid argument start anyway? We were watching freaking  _Bambi_ for crying out loud!" Also, Prince Philip was a beast, but I kept that little tidbit to myself.

"I actually don't remember. Di?"

"Oh please! You know my memory."

Ah, the great short-term memory-loss trick strikes again. My ass! Taani has all her favorite songs memorized, as well as all the famous quotes of her favorite movie. And once Kriya sees a dance move, she never forgets it. How stupid do they think I am? Me, who has literally known them for over ten years?! Time to teach them a lesson. Mwa ha ha ha ha!

I plaster the sweetest of smiles onto my face, putting a full seven years of acting classes to good use. "Guys, why don't you bring some popcorn and ice-cream, while I put on a new movie?"

"Okay," the two innocent yet not-so innocent souls say in unison. Again, mwa ha ha ha ha!

"So Jwalu, what movie are we watching?" asks Kriya, handing me a small box of chocolate ice-cream once she and Taani come back with the snacks a few minutes later.

"My favorite movie ever!"

"Chak De?"

I smirk the most psychotic of smirks, giving The Joker a run for his money. "Taanu, Taanu, Taanu. That's my second-favorite movie. My favorite movie is The Conjuring."

"What?!" the tigresses shriek, quite possibly damaging both my eardrums and their vocal cords. I innocently bat my eyelashes, hoping that they don't see the evil glint in my eye that I know is there.

"Unless of course... you guys are scared."

"No, I was just worried about my baby sister," stutters Kriya.

"Di, you don't have to worry about me. Besides, I'm only two months younger than you," says Taani, mimicking her cousin's tone.

"Alright then, let's watch." With that, I press play, waiting for all hell to break loose.

Halfway through the movie, Kriya, who was now rocking in a corner, starts to yell hysterically.

"Make it stop!"

"Is it over yet?" asks a horrified Taani, her voice cracking a little as she peeks every now and then by removing her hands from her eyes.

I turn off the movie and start laughing hysterically at their antics. Did I forget to mention that my friends are both deathly afraid of horror movies while I absolutely adore them? I know, I'm horrible, but it's their fault for fighting over something that stupid. Plus, I think I got a little dust on my lips when I fell face-first on the floor.

They should really clean this place.

The two girls stop their dramatic antics once they realized what was going on. That's when I stopped laughing and started sweating. Luckily, my savior just came in, with two boys carrying groceries behind her.

"Smriti Aunty save me!" I go and hide behind a petite lady with wild hair and funky glasses. The two tigresses try to come near me, but the boys drop their groceries to hold them back.

"What did you do?" they demand.

Oh, so quick intro of my savior and the boys. Smriti Aunty, my savior, is Kriya's mom, and Taani's maasi. The taller one of the two boys, with the messy mop of curls, is Swayam Shekhawat, Kriya's older brother, and Taani's cousin. And the other one, with the physique of a teenage Salman Khan, is my twin brother, Arjun. Moving on…

"Hey, it was only a horror movie, and they brought on themselves."

"Liar!" scream the violent girls.

"Kriya, Taani, I think Saara's absolutely right," says Smriti Aunty.

I love her!

"But maasi, you weren't even here!"

"You and Kriya had a really stupid argument, Saara probably fell on the floor, you guys did your whole memory thing, and then Saara made you watch a horror movie. Same old, same old," she says to Taani, ticking off each point on her fingers.

Again, I love her!

Kriya stamps her foot in aggravation. "No fair mom!"

Swayam raises an amused eyebrow at his younger sisters. "Okay, what stupid thing did you guys argue about this time?"

The two girls look down, as I explain what had happened.

"Seriously guys? You were watching Bambi for crying out loud!" exclaims my brother.

"That's what I said."

Just then, my phone buzzes. It was a text from my cousin Vrushika.

"Where the hell are you guys?! Sharon di's going insane!" it reads.

Along with multiple angry, scared and crying emojis.

And that weird screaming llama gif.

I check the time on my phone and realize I was supposed to be home like half an hour ago.

Well, we're dead.

"Oh shit!"

"Language," says Smriti Aunty, in her feeble attempt to pretend that she can even remotely be strict. Seriously, where do you think I even learned the word?

"Me and Arjun were supposed to be home like half an hour ago!" I yell, mentally preparing my funeral.

"Arjun and I." Swayam thinks it's a wonderful time to be correcting my grammar, only earning a blow to the shoulder from my brother as a result.

"Let's go!" yells Arjun, as he grabs my hand and drags me out of the house.

* * *

Arjun and I began to quietly tiptoe to our rooms once we entered the house, hoping that Sharon di wouldn't notice.

"Stop right there!"

"Busted," me and Arjun hiss simultaneously.

Remember how I said all that stuff about Taani and Kriya being tigresses? Well, Sharon di's a lioness, and right now she's a pissed off lioness, which is worse.

"Heeey dii," says Arjun, dragging out the syllables of each word, something he only does when he's nervous or scared, and in this case, he's most definitely both.

"Hey di?" she says, her voice shaking with anger, "HEY DI?! Do you guys have any idea how worried I was?! You were supposed to be home by ten, it is eleven!"

"Di, we're really sorry! We just lost track of time and... I love you?" I say, the 'I love you' coming out as more of a question but whatever, I'm giving her the biggest smile I can possibly muster, I'm safe.

"Aw, come here." Di pulls me into a tight hug.

Told ya'.

"Hey, how come Saara gets a hug and I don't?" whines Arjun, pouting. Oh god, he can be such a kid.

"Oh alright," sighs Sharon di, pulling him into our hug. "Now, who's hungry?"

"Ooo me, I am!" He is such a child.

"When are you not hungry?" I ask.

"Alright, alright. Go freshen up and get Vrushi," says Sharon di, probably trying to keep the peace.

"Okay di," I say as I skip off to my room.

Yes, I skip.

I knock on my cousin's door after getting dressed.

Vrushika Rai Prakash, my other cousin. She's shy, quiet, and a total sweetheart who I want to shield from everything wrong with this world.

When I entered Vrushi's room, she was painting her nails white. All of them, except for her ring finger. It's this weird habit of hers. She always either does something different with it or leaves it blank.

"Hey sweetie. You gonna' come have dinner with us?"

"Uh, duh! It's food, of course I'm coming. Honestly Saara, I thought you knew me better than this." How am I related to these people? And why?

"Vrushi, before you get up, I need you to do something for me," I say, as she starts to get up.

"What, no. I want to eat."

"Fine. Then I'll eat all your dessert while you're doing the dishes because it's your turn to do them." This makes her stop right in her tracks. She goes and sits down on her bed like an obedient child. "Close your eyes and don't open them until I ask you to. Oh, and no peeking."

She does as she's told and I go and get two bottles of nail polish. After I'm done, I say, "Open your eyes."

Vrushi looks at her at nails and demands, " _This_ is what you threatened my dessert for?!"

I shake my head. "Vrushi, Vrushi, Vrushi... I'd never eat your dessert. And besides, we're having pie. I thought you knew me better than that."

"Saara ki bachi I'm gonna' kill you!" she exclaims, but then stops and asks, "Wait... what kind of pie?"

I scrunch my face in disgust. "Cherry." Personally, I like apple pie. Other than that, pies can die.

"Yum, let's go woman!" Grabbing onto my wrist, Vrushika drags me to the dining room.

"What took you guys so long?" asks Arjun, once we've reached the table.

"I was painting Vrushi's nails."

"What?!" demands Sharon di. "Miss Vrushika Rai Prakash let you paint her nails? That too before dinner?"

"She threatened to eat my dessert."

"That makes more sense," says Arjun.

"Okay, now everyone sit down and eat," Sharon di says cheerfully.

We all sit down, excited to eat, but the excitement dies down once we see the food.

At least, I think it's food.

"Sharon di, did you...  _make_ all this?" asks Arjun.

"Of course! In fact, I've decided to make you guys dinner every night," she declares, jumping and clapping.

Oh shit.

"So, what exactly is all of this?" asks Vrushi.

"Oh, that's matar paneer," which I'm sure has both matar and paneer in it, "those are kebabs," which I still think are potatoes, "and these are rotis," burnt, very burnt.

Again, oh shit.

"Di, why don't you get dessert out, and we'll start eating," I suggest.

"Okay." Di happily makes her way back into the kitchen as I mentally plan the funerals that will be taking place within the next week. Now, whether my cousins and I die from food poisoning or because di kills us for not eating her food is yet to be determined.

Once she's out of earshot, Arjun hisses, "Have her cook for us every night? I'd rather eat my own cooking!"

"We'll figure out what to do about that later. Right now, eat all this food as fast as you can," I command. With that, the three of us start eating, just to please our big sister. Food poisoning it is.

When Sharon di comes back, she's shocked to see that we've finished eating everything.

"Guys, you didn't even leave any for me. I wanted to taste my own cooking." She looks a little disappointed, but happy that we ate her food.

"No you don't," mutters Arjun. I kick him in the shin, causing him to glare at me as he holds back the scream he was about let out in pain.

"Di, I was thinking that you should just let kaka do all the cooking. I really want to spend some time with my Sharon di," I say sweetly, batting my eyelashes.

"We'll have a ton of time to talk Saara, no biggie."

"Di, what if we all help you cook?" suggests Vrushika.

Say what?

"Yeah, then we can spend time together," adds Arjun. I glare at the two idiots I'm somehow related to, mentally crushing their empty skulls with my bare hands.

"That's a great idea Vrushi! Now everyone, finish up your dessert and go to bed. I have some work to do," says Sharon di. I face-palm myself after di leaves and wonder how and why I ended up in this family.

* * *

Taani's POV

After Saara leaves, I go to my room to finish unpacking. Well, technically, I share it with my cousin Kriya, but still, you get the point.

The last thing I unpack is my memory box. This box includes some of my most prized possessions... aka, my memories.

I take them all out, one by one. The first was a picture of me at age nine, hugging mom before she left for her last concert. It was her last concert because her plane crashed on the way back. The second was another picture, but this time of me and di with bhai during our very first Raksha Bandhan. I think we were most likely five, with bhai being six since he's a year older. Next was a picture of the first time di and I met Saara when we started going to school at the age of six. When we first became best friends. A picture of me at my first violin concert, at the age of ten, was next. I don't know why I even kept this one. I hate it.

Then came my friendship bracelet from Saara. Saara and I made each other friendship bracelets back in grade school, and when we asked di to make one with us, she said no. She's a stubborn one, my sister. Girly things aren't really her thing, but both me and Saara knew that she wanted to make one, she just didn't want to get over her ego. After that, I pulled out my princess ring. Last year for Raksha Bandhan, bhai gave me a ring shaped like a crown, and he gave di a four-leaf clover ring; because di's his lucky charm, and I'm his princess.

Even though he calls us free loaders and treats us like a nuisance.

After that, my hands found yet another picture. This one was of me and another girl. Ruhi. My former best-friend. I wanted to tear it in half and throw it on the floor so that I could burn it later, but I just couldn't do it. And then, it was as if that one picture cursed me to find more memories from school, memories that bring me nothing but sadness and anger.

First was a bracelet. A bracelet made from old guitar strings, by an old friend. Next was a necklace given to me by that same old friend. Aarav Saxena. The guy who turned my life upside down. Who changed it for the better. Who taught me how to live life. Who taught me to play music for myself and not other people. Who came into my life like an angel.

And then left me forever like the devil he is.

I look at more pictures of me and Aarav, some of which I'm not where I even got. We'd come a long way from not even acknowledging each other to becoming the best of friends.

Ah! Just the last thing I wanted to find. Aarav's letter, the one he left for me on graduation night, along with the necklace.

That stupid, goddamn letter! It makes me angry, it makes me sad, and sometimes, it even makes me laugh at how seriously screwed up life is. That's what all my school memories are; a sad, painful reminder of what I went through then. I wish whatever part of my brain had control over my memories would just... erase them.

At this rate, I can count on failing APS.

"Princess?" I hear my sister's voice ring out, thankful that it brought me out of my trance.

"Yeah di?"

"What are you doing?"

"Just unpacking," I say, putting everything back in the box.

"More like taking a walk down memory lane," she says knowingly, crossing her arms over her chest. "You're thinking about Aarav again aren't you?" I stay quiet. "Taanu look, I know how important Aarav was to you, but do you really think he'd want you to be sad because of him?"

"No."

"Exactly! Now come on, get up. Time to go help mom make dinner because lord know bhai can't even boil water."

"Di, he burned water just yesterday, you don't have to tell me twice." I quickly get up and follow my cousin to the kitchen.

"Finally you both came!" yells maasi, once we walk into our disaster of a kitchen. "This boy is so useless."

"Mom!" shrieks bhai, outraged, while di and I giggle.

"Okay maasi, what are we making?"

"Ooo, ooo, pasta!" exclaims di, jumping up and down.

"Is she a girl or a monkey?" mutters bhai, which causes di to step on his foot. He glares at her and she happily returns the favor.

"I want to make pasta, di let's make pasta. Bhai, go set the table, your utensil placement is on point." I practically push my brother out of the kitchen and towards the dining table.

"Okay, so do we want cheese or tomato?" asks maasi.

I say, "Cheese," just as di says, "Tomato."

Maasi just looks at us, almost as if to say 'are you kidding me right now?'

Then I say, "Tomato," but di decides to say, "Cheese."

Maasi sighs. "Alright, let's go with both," she says, throwing her arms up in the air, giving up on us at that point.

Maasi boils the pasta while I cut up the vegetables and di gets out the shrimp, chicken, tomato sauce, and cheese. When we're done, it looks and smells amazing.

Di and I devour our first helping in seconds while bhai and maasi are still eating the first half of theirs.

"Bloody animals," mutters bhai, which earns him a kick from both of us. He should really stop muttering stuff if he wants to live to the age of twenty.

Once we're done eating, di and I go to our room and Skype Saara.

"Hey guys."

"Are you okay? You look like you're about to puke," remarks di.

"Well, my wonderful Sharon di decided to cook for us, and she made matar paneer, which didn't look like it had matar or paneer in it, kebabs which I thought were potatoes, and rotis which were burnt. Very burnt." Di and I burst out laughing at her suffering.

"You guys it's not funny!" Oops, looks like our Jwalamukhi just erupted.

"Sorry Jwalu, but this is just too damn funny," I manage to say through my laughter.

"Of the animals in the world, you guys just had to be hyenas."

"Who are you calling a hyena?" demands di.

"You, who else?" Di glares at her. "Anyways, my cousin Vrushika and my idiot brother made it worse. Now, we have to help Sharon di make dinner every night."

"I said I'm sorry woman!" I hear a female voice, who I'm assuming is Vrushika, yell.

"Sorry ain't cutting it!"

"Oh get over it ya' big baby!" I hear Arjun shout.

"Shut up!"

"We can bring you leftover pasta tomorrow if you want," I say, hoping to lighten up her mood.

Saara dramatically wipes away a fake tear. "You'd really do that for me?"

I shake y head in disbelief. "Jwalu, you're such a drama queen."

"I know. But you love me anyway."

"Crazy girl."

"Hey, I have Arjun as a twin brother, and you and Kriya as best-friends. Of course I'm crazy!"

"Hello, still here!" di 's voice booms throughout our shared bedroom.

"Oh there's Kriya. Finally! I was getting sick of that hyena."

"Jwalu!" yells di.

"Okay, let's change the topic shall we?" I suggest, weirded out that I was the one keeping the peace for a change. That's usually Jwalu's area of expertise.

"You're absolutely right Taanu! I mean, tomorrow's our first day at ! Aren't you guys excited?" says di, her eyes lighting up like a little kid's. Saara and I smile at this. These are the rare moments when you see Kriya Shekhawat as herself. A happy and carefree girl. Not the guarded, tomboyish, stubborn Junior Rani Lakshimibai the rest of the world sees.

"Totally excited!" exclaims Saara. They both look at me. Look, I may get excited over practically everything, but not going to St. Louis. Why? Because  _I_  live breathe music, and music is the last priority at St. Louis. I did get into SPACE Academy, which is one of the most prestigious art schools in the country, but I decided to go to St. Louis instead. Why? Because there I have my two best-friends in the whole universe and beyond, and I can't live without them.

"Hello? Taanu?" says di, snapping her fingers in front of my face.

"Sorry guys."

"You know, you space out a lot," Saara points out.

"And we all know why."

"Aarav again?"

"Yeah."

"Hello? I'm right here," I remind them, frustrated that they were talking about me as if I wasn't even there.

"Sorry," they both say, causing me to roll my eyes. Aarav wasn't my only problem!

Saara's cousin's yelling - man she can yell! - at her to go to sleep is what caused me to come out my own world.

Great, I spaced out again.

"Gotta' go guys."

"See you tomorrow," says di, as she turns off our laptop.

She then turns to me. Almost as if di had been reading my mind, she asks, "Taanu, is this about your dad?"

"No, why?" I was surprised that she'd mention him. I mean, Aarav may not be my only problem, but my dad hasn't been a major concern for me in a while.

"Well, you may have been just a tad pissed off when you couldn't change your last name from Bakshi to Shekawat."

"It's not that big of a deal." Di doesn't buy the crap I'm selling for a second. Heck, even I don't buy the crap that I'm selling!

"Taani, I know when you're lying."

"Okay fine, it's a huge deal! I just don't want to have any relation to that man!" Anger floods me as the thought of having one last remaining connection to my father begins to taunt me.

Di moves closer to me and envelopes me in a tight squeeze, which any other person would find strange because she doesn't seem like the type of person to enjoy physical contact of any kind, but it's actually me and Saara that are like that. We love di's warm, comforting hugs.

"Taanu, even if you're still  _legally_ a Bakshi, you'll always be a Shekawat to me. To all of us."

"Thanks di. You always know what to say." I bite back the tears threatening to spill.

Di is quick to take note of that action. "You know, for someone who's always telling me that crying is healthy, you tend to not take your own advice." I stay silent. "Tomorrow's a big day, so just get some sleep okay?" Di gives me a chaste kiss on the side of my head before making her way to her own bed.

This is why I can't live without my best-friends. They're everything to me, and I'm nothing without them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Musical Inspiration: Girls Just Wanna Have Fun by Miley Cyrus, Shake It Off by Taylor Swift and Hold Onto The Memories by Corey Tynan


	2. Mornings

Kriya's POV

Finally, the day I've been waiting for my entire life is here! Well, I said the same thing about graduation, all my important birthdays - tenth because decade, thirteenth because teenager, eighteen because adult - and when I finally got my braces taken out... and probably a bunch of other stuff, but whatever.

Ugh, why do I feel so tired? Oh, right. I was up all night looking at 's website, you know, for research purposes. Plus, I was too excited to sleep. Guess I'm having coffee instead of tea this morning.

When I go into the kitchen, I see that my mom is already in there making breakfast. And my coffee's already done.

I go and hug her from behind. "Mom, how did you know that I needed coffee this morning?"

"Because I'm your mother. Now help me make breakfast." I make a face, but get to work either way.

After I'm done, I go to my bhai's room to wake him up. When I enter the forest of decay, that's what we like to call bhai's room since it's so messy, I see, other than a big fat mess, my brother sleeping with a dreamy look on his face. I go over to him and shake him gently to wake him up.

"Bhai! Bhai! Come on, get up!" This goes on for like five minutes, and then I start to get irritated. "Oh hello Mr. Majnu, enough dreaming about this so-called Laila of yours! Get up, or I'll find her and tell her everything that you don't want her to know."

He rolls over and turns to the other side. The nerve!

Then, I get a brilliant idea. "I'll introduce her to ma. You know, the one who gave birth to you and has all of your baby pictures."

Bhai jumps out of bed with a jolt and runs to the bathroom.

"Oh yeah, and remember to wake Taani up."

"No way!"

"Why not?" I sure as hell didn't want to do it!

"Because she's terrifying and able to kill me."

"Bhai, this is your baby sister you're talking about. Your little princess," I remind him sweetly, hoping he'll cave.

"Yeah well, whoever tries to disturb her beauty sleep gets their head bit off and I like my head. It's attached to my beautiful, perfect, curly hair," he says, locking the bathroom door.

"Unbelievable," I mutter, as I go to my room to wake up Taani. Of all the times for him to use that unused brain of his, he picks  _now_ , when it  _doesn't_  benefit me? What a jerk!

I enter our room and go near Taani's bed. I kneel down on both knees and stroke her hair. "Taani, Princess, get up."

"Di, five more minutes," she mumbles like a little kid.

I smile. "Okay. After I'm done changing, you better be up." Maybe she's in a good morning mood today.

Are pigs flying?

I see her roll over and turn to the other side. Like brother like sister. I shake my head and head inside the washroom to change.

I come out five minutes later, and see that Maharani Sahiba is still sleeping peacefully. "Taanu, it's been five minutes."

"Five more minutes di."

"Taanu, you said that five minutes ago. Now get up and change." She unwillingly gets up and curses me under her breath, using words that I didn't know even existed.

I go to the dining room and find my mom, bhai, toast, and omelet at the table. I wolf down my breakfast, while bhai slowly eats his. Mom, on the other hand, was working.

"Mom, I thought the rule was no electronics at the table."

"Yeah, but that only applies to using them for fun. This is work."

"You always say that food comes first and that whatever rules you have for us, apply to you as well."

My mom groans, shutting off her laptop. "You know Kriya, if I knew that you'd remember every single little thing I've ever told you, I wouldn't have said half of it."

"Maasi, listen do di. She only wants what's best for you," says Taani, walking towards us as she puts her watch on.

"Okay, who's the adult here, me or you two?"

Taani and I look at each other and seriously say, "Us."

Mom turns to bhai. "Swayam, back me up here."

Taani and I glare at him. "You know what mom, I'm getting really late. Enjoy your breakfast!"

He rushes out of the house, causing Taani to remark, "Man, that boy can run."

"Wait, aren't you two getting late as well?"

"We're just waiting for Saara, mom."

A second later, Taani's phone beeps. "It's Saara," she informs me. "She says that she and Arjun will be here in a couple minutes. Something about a Siren, a lioness, and Arjun's idiocy."

Say what?

* * *

Saara's POV

"Saara get up!" my cousin yells, trying to shake me awake.

"Di, only five more minutes, please!"

"What five minutes? You've been saying 'five more minutes' for the past fifteen minutes so get up already!"

She proceeds to then yank my pillow out from under my head, causing me to sit up. "What the heck di? I was having such a nice dream. Why'd you have to go and ruin it all for me?"

"You can continue to dream in class. That's what it's for anyway," she says, but bites her tongue right after she realizes what she just said. "Forget what I just said. You're going to sleep at night like you always do," The great and powerful Sharon Rai Prakash, a blubbering mess? It was a sight to see.

I get up and hug her from the side. "Di, I know what you meant."

Di breathes out a sigh of relief and says, "Okay, now get ready, and wake up your lazyass brother and cousin," before walking out of my room.

I quickly get ready and head over to my brother's room. I walk over to his bed and shake him awake. "Arjun, wake up!" I whine, hoping to annoy the sleep out of him.

"Saara, shut the hell up! Just go away and let me sleep," he says, hugging his pillow even tighter.

"Arjun Rai Prakash, wake up before I get Sharon di to wake you up." With that horrid thought in mind, he jolts out of bed, which causes me to laugh hysterically.

"Oh yes, do continue laughing! It's not like karma's going to bitch-slap you when you have to go wake up Vrushika."

"What's so bad about waking up Vrushika?" Arjun says nothing as he gets up and heads to his bathroom. Weirdo.

I go to Vrushika's room and see that she's still sleeping. I walk over to her bed and gently say, "Vrushi, wake up."

She whacks me with a pillow.

"What the hell Vrushi?! Get up!" She opens her eyes and glares at me. Oh, I see now, she's in lioness mode, which was what we use to describe the usually sweet as sugar Vrushika Rai Prakash when she's pissed off. I turn around and walk out of her room.

I go into the kitchen and see that Sharon di's trying to make us breakfast.  _Really_ trying. "Di, you need any help?" I ask, not that I'd be any help in the first place, but it's the thought that counts.

"Nah, I'm good."

I grab an apple and say, "Well, it's just going to be you and Vrushi this morning for breakfast."

"Why?"

"Yeah Saara, why? I thought that we were gonna' help di make breakfast," says Arjun, coming in and grabbing  _my_ apple. Ass.

"Idiot!" I mutter, getting the urge to face palm myself. "Because I promised Taani and Kriya that we'd go to college together."

"Oh right!"

"Oh, so now he remembers."

"Saara, stop talking to yourself already, we're getting late!" That's it, I'm gonna' kill him.

"Bye di!" I say as I hug her goodbye.

"Bye," she says, as she gets back to her cooking.

Vrushi's gonna' kill us.

On the plus side, this means that Arjun gets to die twice.

My priorities aren't really in order, are they?

While in the car, I text Taani, "Me and Arjun will be there in a couple minutes. Sorry we're late, but Arjun's an idiot and almost caused Sharon di to go into Siren mode, and my cousin Vrushi was in lioness mode and tried to kill me."

That should sum up my morning.

We arrive at Taani and Kriya's house and open the door, since no one ever bothers to lock it.

"Good morning Smriti Aunty!" I exclaim, walking inside.

"Ah, there's my favorite child!"

Taani and Kriya both let out cries of outrage, but Arjun stops it from escalating.

"Yeah, we literally have zero time for an emotional outburst, please exit to your left," says Arjun, while pushing them out the door.

"Bye Aunty!" I exclaim.

"Bye!"

Once we're in the car, aka Arjun's baby, Taani asks "So what's with the weird text you sent me this morning?"

"Oh, that," I say, as I begin to explain my insane family.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Music Inspiration: The World Is New by Save Ferris


	3. First Day

Arjun, Saara, Taani, and Kriya arrived at college and ran to their first class, which was APS: Anthropology, Psychology, Sociology.

They get to class and see that the teacher's not even there yet, relaxing as they go in and take their seats. Kriya and Saara sit at the front, with Saara being closest to the door, while Taani sits behind Kriya, and Arjun sits beside her.

A couple minutes later, the teacher comes in. She was pretty, half the class was staring at her, but also terrifying.

"She looks like that doll from The Conjuring," Kriya mutters under her breath, causing her friends to chuckle.

"Good morning future fail - I mean freshers," says the scary professor, her cold voice making everyone immediately shut up. Everyone in the class exchanges identical 'what the hell?' looks.

"My name is Professor Ananya Malik, ma'am to the rest of you. Not Ananya ma'am, and certainly not Anu ma'am. Simply, ma'am," she states, giving everyone a death glare, which causes them to pee their pants, but still exchange their 'what the hell?' looks again.

As Professor Ananya starts explaining the first chapter, Saara just zones out. Kriya, Taani, and even Arjun, are taking notes, but not Saara. Saara can't stand strict, monotone teachers like Professor Ananya. Plus, she has a pretty short attention span, especially if she finds something boring. She was in her own, happy world of food and cartoons... until the cold voice of a certain dicta - no,  _professor_  brought her out of it.

"Miss Rai Prakash! I have been asking you something for the past five minutes, and all you've done is ignore me!"

"Sorry, ma'am."

"Can you please just answer the question?"

"Um, what was the question again?"

Professor Ananya sighs, rolling her eyes. "What is the difference between Anthropology, Psychology, and Sociology?"

Saara's face was a complete blank as she stared at the blackboard for a good two minutes. "I'm waiting Ms. Rai Prakash." That's when Saara's savior, Kriya, nudged her with her foot and slid her notebook over to her desk so that she can live.

Saara clears her throat and confidently states, "Anthropology is the study of the  _lives_  and  _culture_  of human beings, while Psychology is the study of human _behavior_ as well the human  _mind_. And... oh, Sociology is the study of human  _relationships_  within  _social organizations_."

Just then, the bell rings and an irritated Professor Ananya says, "Thank you for wasting my valuable time, Ms. Rai Prakash." But Saara didn't care. In fact, she was the first one to dash out of that classroom while shouting "I'm free!" The rest of the class kind of just awkwardly walked out.

Once everyone was outside, Taani and Kriya both grab Saara by her arms and demand, "What the hell was that?" Arjun, on the other hand, was laughing hysterically.

Saara simply glances at him, annoyed. "Oh, so not only am I best-friends with hyenas, but I'm related to one too. That's just great."

"Shut up!" says Kriya.

"Why'd you have to run out like that?" asks Taani.

"Yeah. She already doesn't like you very much, no offense, so why are you trying to make her hate you?"

"Can we get something to eat first? I'm not trained to answer this many questions at once unless I have an actual meal in my stomach."

Kriya and Taani just look at each other before dragging Saara to the canteen. Arjun on the other hand sneakily walks away from them.

* * *

Outside, an expensive black car approaches the college. It parks on a star with an 'S' on it. Two beautiful girls get out of the car. One with style and attitude, the other slouchy and unaware of her surroundings. One who made boys drool, while the other made them want to pee in their pants. One was named Sharon, the other Vrushika.

As they were walking towards the college, Sharon all but commands, "Vrushika Rai Prakash, get those earbuds out of your ears. It's bad to walk and listen to music at the same time."

"Di, chill. I do this all the time."

"Maybe in Dehli, but -" Sharon begins, but her younger cousin cuts her off and says, "Not in Mumbai. Blah blah blah, I know!"

"Vrushi -" Sharon begins to warn her, but gets cut off again.

"Bye di, I'm going to go find food!" says Vrushika, leaving her dumbstruck cousin behind.

* * *

The girls walked into the canteen and sat down to get Saara some food, while lecturing her on making teachers hate her on the first day. Saara tells Taani and Kriya to get the food while she texts Arjun.

Saara: What kind of brother are you?! Who leaves their one and only twin sister alone in their time of need?!

Arjun: Oh stop it, you Drama Queen. First of all, you're technically not my only twin sister, so I'm going to screenshot this to Naina, have fun with that. Second of all, this is totally payback for calling me a hyena. Mwa ha ha ha ha!

Saara: You're evil, an asshole, and I hate you!

Arjun: Yeah yeah, love you too. Bye sissy!

Saara: Arjun I'll kill you!

Two minutes pass, and Arjun has yet to text back.

Saara: Arjun, reply na?!

Another minute passes, and Taani and Kriya have now returned to their table.

"Hey Jwalu, we got you your favorite -" Kriya begins, but she stops speaking when she sees her best friend's face.

"Jwalu?" says Taani, as she waves her hand in front of Saara's face.

Taani and Kriya look at each other and yell, "Oh my god, it's Karan Wahi!" This brings Saara out of her trance immediately.

"What, where?!" she demands, getting up and looking around. She looked insane, which scared basically everyone except Taani and Kriya.

"In Goa," Taani says sweetly. Saara glares at her, but Taani doesn't seem fazed by it.

They all sit down, and Saara starts devouring her sandwich. After she's done, Kriya says, "You need to start paying attention in class."

Saara laughs at this. When her friends don't laugh along with her, she realizes, "Oh wait, you're serious."

"Oh, we're very serious," Taani tells her. Just as Saara was about to say something else, a petite girl practically jumps on her from behind, scaring the living daylights off of Miss 'I watch horror movies so it's impossible to scare me' Rai Prakash.

"Nisha!" Saara practically screams at the top of her lungs, as if the spirit of Sharon Rai Prakash herself had entered into her body. "Get off me you crazy monkey lady!"

"It's crazy cat lady you doofus!" Nisha breaks Saara's eardrums while yelling into her ear.

"Well, you're weird, so it's crazy monkey lady for you."

"I'm not weird, I'm special and unique."

"You are literally cutting off all circulation to my lungs."

"I think you screaming like a banshee might have had something to do with that."

"Are you guys seriously just going to sit there and drink your goddamn smoothies while this mad woman assaults me?!" Saara demands from her two best friends.

"Yup!" they say in unison, taking a slurp of their smoothies.

"I hate you all with the white-hot intensity of a thousand suns."

"We love you too!" Taani and Kriya say cheerfully.

"Ugh, I'm bored with you," says Nisha, finally letting go of Saara and making her way over to Taani and Kriya. "So, what class do you guys have next?"

"Um, I'm pretty sure we have Economics," says Kriya, while Saara groans.

"Oh cool, I have Economics with you guys then."

"Yay!" exclaims Taani, pulling Nisha in for a hug. She then glances down at her watch and remarks, "Oh, we have 45 minutes left. I'm just going to look around the college. See you guys in class."

"Bye Tans!" says Nisha, waving at her.

"She is so looking for a quiet place where she can think and sing," Kriya says knowingly, the minute her sister's out of earshot.

"She'll probably end up in one of the old abandoned classrooms. Or in one of the fire exits," Nisha points out.

"But she'll never, ever go up to the terrace. Miss 'I'm not scared of anything' will never ever go near a terrace or a balcony. Even though she's not afraid of heights, and she always sits on her windowsill," says Kriya.

"It's strange," says Saara, going into deep thought.

Suddenly, Nisha slaps her forehead and says to Saara, "Jwalu, I almost forgot! I have to talk to you about something important. Like, right now."

"You guys go ahead. I'm starving, and I really want to finish my book," Kriya tells them, as she gets up to go buy a sandwich.

Nisha stops her and says, "Kri, take my sandwiches. They're cream cheese and cucumber -"

Kriya cuts her off by screaming, "Gimmie, gimmie, gimmie!"

"Hey, how come you don't get excited when I make you sandwiches?" asks Saara, pouting.

"Because your sandwiches aren't as good as Nisha's. Or Taani's. Or my mom's. Yeah, your sandwiches just aren't that good," says Kriya, as she takes the sandwich from Nisha and sits down to eat.

Before Saara could say anything else, Nisha says, "Okay, let's go Jwalu. Bye Kri." Kriya doesn't even look back at Nisha as she drags Saara out of the canteen.

The two girls go to an empty corridor and Saara asks,"So, what's up? What did you want to talk to me about?"

"I wanted to talk to you about Sharon di. What is all this dazzler-weakling crap? This morning, Aashi di said not to talk to her at college unless we're alone because she doesn't want me to become a 'target' or some shit like that."

"Oh...  _that_."

"Yeah,  _that_!"

"Look, I honestly don't know what exactly caused all this bullshit. But from what Rey, Vicky, Swayam and Simmi di told me, Sharon di became really mean after chachu said some stupid things to her without thinking. You know, after the divorce was finalized. So last year, she created the whole dazzler-weakling divide. Aashi di got classified as a 'weakling' because she thinks this is all insanely stupid, not to mention childish. Oh, and she still wanted to be able to hang out with Bharat, Neha, and Swayam."

"Well she's right! It is insanely stupid and childish."

"I know! It's all so messed up. And Sharon di won't even talk to anyone about it!" Saara groans out in frustration, sitting down on one of the benches.

Nisha sits down beside her, gently rubbing her friend's back. "Hey, it's okay. Everything's going to be okay."

Saara gives her a small smile, which causes Nisha to say, "What the hell is that?. You call that a smile? I call that being upset but trying not to upset your friends. Now if you don't give me an actual smile, I will shove one my 'special' sandwiches down your throat."

"If you're going to threaten me like that, then how do expect me to smile?"

Nisha then uses her hands to make Saara's mouth smile. "Good enough."

After she removes her hands from Saara's face, Saara says, "You're insane, you know that right?" to which Nisha replies, "I know, but you love me anyway."

"Do I have a choice?"

"Nope!" This is what finally causes Saara to smile. Not a fake one, but a real one.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Professor Ananya and Nisha Sen, both crucial characters, are my OCs.
> 
> Musical Inspiration: Nothing Else Matters by Little Mix


	4. The Mean Girl

Kriya's POV

I'm currently reading my book, and I'm at a really good part, when someone taps me on the shoulder. I turn around.

"Yes?"

The girls standing in front of me look like typical mean girls. Well, at least the one in the hot pink dress. The other one seems harmless enough. But the one in the dress is scowling, looking down at me. But as Taani says, it's not nice to judge a book by its cover.

"You're sitting in my seat," says the girl in the dress, as if she was the queen and I was a lowly peasant.

Well, there goes that theory.

I scoff, getting out of my seat. "Excuse me?"

The girl lets out a dramatic sigh, rolling her eyes. "You're sitting in my seat."

"Your seat? Um, I'm sorry, but I don't see  _anyone's_  name here, never mind yours." Who is this girl?

The girl rolls her eyes and points to a sticker. "That sticker means that this is my seat. The 'S' stands for Sharon. As in Sharon Rai Prakash. Now get out of my sight you bloody weakling."

Is she serious? I take the sticker off, crumple it up, and throw it away. "Next time, you might want a sticker that matches your ego. This one was a bit small," I say snarkily, getting my things and leaving both the girl, and her friend, dumbstruck.

I'd rather have my best-friends poke at my eyes with that horrid thing that they like to call eyeliner than ever have the displeasure of seeing Miss Sharon Rai Prakash, ever again. That's how much I hate her after our first encounter.

Narrator's POV

Sharon and Simmi sit down after Kriya leaves, the former fuming in anger as the latter tries to get her to calm down.

"Sharon, why are you giving that girl so much importance? Just chill."

"But Simmi, how can she say that to me? How - how dare she? I'll show her! I'm going to her life a living hell! Just you wait and watch," Sharon promises as she starts plotting her revenge. Simmi just prays that the poor girl's safety, and hopes that they never meet again.

Meanwhile, Kriya's walking down the corridor, cursing Sharon under her breath, when she hears a voice.

"Hello? Wait!" She turns around and sees a familiar girl running up to her.

Once the girl catches up to her, she says, "Are you completely insane, or do you simply have a death wish?"

Kriya's extremely confused by the stranger's randomness. "Excuse me?"

"You pissed off Sharon freaking Rai Prakash. That's like poking a bear with a stick."

"Well, someone needs to put her in her place. And why did she call me a weakling?"

"Ah, you must be a fresher. So you see, last year, Sharon created a divide of sorts. 'Dazzler' means rich people, while 'Weakling' means us middle-class people."

"That's so bogus! Why doesn't anyone try to stop her?"

"Because her dad is Gautam Rai Prakash. Ex-choreographer, current leading businessman... and he's also a trustee."

Kriya sits down on one of the benches and asks, "Why would she do this?"

The girl sits down beside her. "Look, Sharon holds a lot of power. And most people are scared of her. But I've known Sharon ever since we were ten years old. She's a sweetheart, but she's also pretty broken. I never knew that she could do something like this."

They sit there in silence for a few minutes, until Kriya unexpectedly yells, "I remember now!" The girl looks at her, confused, prompting Kriya to ask her, "You're Neha, right? Swayam bhai's friend?"

That's when it hits Neha.

"Kriya?"

"Yup!"

"Yay! I am so happy to finally meet you!" exclaims Neha as she hugs Kriya.

Kriya and Neha met through Swayam's Facebook account and spend hours and hours chatting together, but they've never met each other in person. The two immediately start chatting. Kriya tells her about what's been going on, and Neha tells her how to survive this place.

* * *

Taani's POV

"What does a girl have to do to find a nice, secluded, peaceful area, in a gigantic college like this?" I ask myself as I walk into what I'm assuming is an empty rehearsal hall.

I sit down on one of the dices that are supposedly chairs and take a look at my swelling ankle. "Crap! Di's gonna' kill me for not taking my painkillers," I mutter. I look through my bag for my painkillers and a bottle of water. "Great. Painkillers, but no water bottle. Genius Taani, genius!" I get up so that I can go get some water. On my way out, I bump into someone.

I was about to apologize, until I heard the person say, "Are you blind?"

Um, rude much?

I look at the person who just spoke to me, and I see that it's a girl in a hot pink dress. With her, is another girl. She has really cool hair.

"You know, if I was actually blind, I would've been extremely offended by that comment." I hate it when people say things like 'Are you blind?' or 'Are you deaf?' I find it rude and obnoxious.

"Look fresher, I don't need a lecture from you, so just buzz off!"

"Really? Because it seems to me like you could certainly use a lesson in manners."

"You're going to give me, Sharon Rai Prakash, a lesson in manners?" she says as if I was a disgusting piece of crap stuck to her shoe. "Just who the hell do you think you are?"

"A person! And there's a way to talk to a person and treat a person, and what you're doing right now, is not it. No matter what your name is, or how much power you hold, at the end of the day, you're just a regular person like everyone else here."

I shake my head in disbelief as I march out of the rehearsal hall, wondering how someone could be so... downright bitchy!

Narrator's POV

After Taani leaves, Sharon looks like she's about to explode. Simmi makes her sit down on one of the dices and says, "Sharon, calm down. This is so not worth getting angry over."

"I can't calm down Simmi! First that girl in the canteen, and now this one! I'm not going to spare them, either of them," says Sharon, as she marches out of the Rehearsal Hall, while Simmi texts the boys.

* * *

Outside, a very expensive car screeches into the St. Louis parking lot, and parks next to Sharon's car. The boy in the car gets out, sneakily avoiding the teacher whose class he had missed this morning, and makes his way straight to the canteen.

Once he arrives at the canteen, he sees his two best friends. Walking over to them, he happily exclaims, "Hey guys!"

"Hey guys ke bache!" yells the taller one of the two. "Where the hell have you been?"

"Since when am I your kid?" the guy asks teasingly.

"Rey!" yells the shorter one.

"Okay fine, sorry. Now tell me what's wrong."

"Didn't you get Simmi's text?" asks the shorter one.

"No, what -" begins Rey, but the taller one cuts him off and says, "Read it right now!"

"Alright, alright. Relax Vicky," Rey says to the taller boy. He gets out his phone and looks at the message.

"Where the hell are you guys?! Two girls (freshers/weaklings) told off Sharon and she's pissed! Come to the Rehearsal Hall right now!"

Rey smacks his forehead in frustration. "Oh shit!" He turns around and is about to head to the rehearsal hall, when he collides with someone and gets juice spilled on him.

"Ah, crap!"

"Sorry Rey, I swear it was an accident -" begins the boy who collided with Rey, but Rey cuts him off by saying, "It's okay dude, just chill." The boy smiles as he walks away.

Rey turns back to his friends. "Guys, please try and go calm Sharon down. I'll be there as soon as I can." With that Rey leaves. On his way out, he bumps into Kriya, but because he was in such a hurry, he didn't even look back to apologize.

Kriya, on the other hand, was beyond pissed because she was carrying an armload of books which she got from the library, and they had all fallen due to Rey bumping into her.

"Neha, please wait here. I'm gonna' catch up do that idiot and teach him a lesson," says Kriya as she runs after him.

When Kriya finally catches up to Rey, she grabs him by the arm.

"What the hell?"

"That's what I wanted to ask you. You bumped into me, and that caused me drop all my books! And the worst part is, you didn't even stop to apologize!"

"Look, I'm in a hurry right now so -" Rey begins, but Kriya cuts him off and says, "So what? It's common courtesy that if you bump into someone, then you should apologize."

"Fine, I'm sorry!" says Rey, as he starts to leave, but Kriya grabs his arm again.

"Say it like you mean it." Now Rey's the one who's pissed!

He pushes Kriya against the wall with his free hand. "I already said sorry to you! I told you that I'm in a hurry, and yet you keep interrupting me. Bloody Baatcutter."

He starts to leave, when Kriya comes back to her senses and yells after him, "What did you just call me?!"

Rey stops, turns, and yells back, "Baatcutter!" Then he leaves to go change his shirt and make sure that his best friend doesn't unleash hell on Earth.

* * *

Taani walks down the corridor after getting a water bottle from the canteen, and walks into the girl's locker room. But what she doesn't know is that she just went into the boy's locker room because Rey's best-friends, the pranksters, switched the signs as a joke. Thankfully, the locker room was empty.

After Taani's done taking her painkillers, she's about to leave the locker room, when a hard masculine chest stops her. When she looks up at the owner of the hard muscular chest, the first thing that comes to her mind is,  _"Why does literally everyone here look like Salman Khan?"_

But the first thing she says is, "Are you mad? What the hell do you think you're doing in the girl's locker room?"

To this Rey retorts, " _This_ is the boy's locker room. What the hell do  _you_ think you're doing here?"

Taani furrows her eyebrows in confusion. "Boy's locker room? This is the girl's locker room, the boy's locker room is over there."

She points to the sign, and Rey realizes that this was his friends' idea of a joke. "Look, there's been a misunderstanding. This is the boy's locker room. Someone switched the signs as a joke And by the way, do you have any common sense or what? This room is blue, and the other one is pink."

"That is the most stereotypical thing I have ever heard! And not all girls like the color pink okay? I for one find pink to be the most repulsive color in the whole universe and beyond."

"Well for your information, this place was built like seventy years ago, so obviously they're going to use pink and blue!"

"Well excuse me for not knowing that! And you know what, maybe it's time for a change."

"Then why are you picking my brain over it? Go take it up with the board or something."

Taani stomps out of the locker room while cursing Rey under her breath. Then she says to herself, "Maybe I should change the signs back." She takes her bobby pin out of her hair, and her bangs fall in front of her face.

She puts them behind her ear and huffs, "Seriously bangs, I love you, but you irritate me." She goes off and finds a random stool, which is quite wobbly, but she gets on it anyway. She takes her bobby pin and starts unscrewing the bolts.

Once she's done, she screams as she's about to fall off the stool due to its wobbliness, and due to the weight of the sign. Rey, who had heard her scream, rushes out of the locker room and puts his hands on either side of her waist in order to break her fall.

He takes the sign from Taani and puts it on the ground. Taani carefully steps off the stool and picks up the screws. She goes over to where Rey is and puts the screws on top of the sign.

Rey looks at Taani and says, "Come on, I'll help you."

Taani smiles. "Thanks. But could you maybe put on a shirt first?" Rey bites his tongue and remembers that he took his shirt with juice on it off, and was about to put on a new one, when he heard Taani scream.

"Um, yeah, I'll be right back," Rey says awkwardly as he goes back into the locker room to put on a new shirt.

Taani gets on the stool and starts unscrewing the bolts for the other sign. Rey comes out of the locker room, while Taani unscrews the last bolt. Rey quickly takes the sign from her, so that she doesn't fall like before. Like this, they work together in putting the right signs back on.

Once they're done, the bell rings and Rey slaps his forehead.

"What happened?" asks a slightly concerned Taani.

"Well, my friend is angry, and I'm literally the only person who can calm her down, and now my other friends are going to kill me."

"Does your friend like chocolates by any chance?"

"She lives and breathes chocolate and treats it like the holy grail, but where -" begins Rey, stopping mid-sentence when Taani hands him a chocolate bar.

"You're late because of me, and we kind of got off on the wrong foot. By the way, I'm Taani."

"Thank you so much, you're a lifesaver! I'm Reyaansh, but you can call me Rey," says Rey, smiling as he takes the chocolate bar from her.

"Nice to meet you, Rey! Now, I gotta' get to class, so I'll see you around." With that, Taani leaves, with Rey waving back at her before he heads to class as well.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Musical Inspiration: Put Your Graffiti On Me by Kat Graham


	5. Rai Prakash & Singhania

Taani runs to class and sits beside Kriya who's already there, heavily invested in her book. "That must be one good book if it's kept you sitting for this long," she remarks as she sits down.

"Oh my god, it's amazing! Thank you so much for telling me to start reading," exclaims Kriya, before yet again, becoming entranced by her book.

Nisha and Saara walk in and sit behind Taani and Kriya respectively.

"Hey guys!" says Nisha, getting her pens and notebooks out.

"Hey Nish," says Taani, just as Kriya says, not even looking up from her book as she turns a page, "Hi Nisha."

"Okay, twelve years later, and that still freaks me out," says Saara.

"I thought nothing freaked you out Miss 'I love horror movies' Rai Prakash," teases Taani, smirking.

"Says Miss 'I'm not scared of anything, yet I refuse to go near a balcony' Shekhawat," Saara bites back teasingly.

Taani's about to say something else, when Kriya cuts in and asks, "Hey, where's Arjun?"

Just then, Arjun walks in, causing Nisha to mutter, "Speak of the devil, and he shall appear," under her breath. Arjun hears what Nisha had said, and goes to sit behind her.

"Hey pain in my ass," he says cheerfully, the brightest of smiles on his face.

Nisha turns around and replies, equally as cheerfully, sporting an eerily similar psychotic smile on her face, "Hello thorn in my side."

There's an awkward silence which Kriya breaks by saying, "Wow, there is so much love between them. It's beautiful."

Taani giggles. "Hey, at least they're being cheerful instead of hostile."

"You're right, it's a huge improvement."

"One step for man, one giant leap for mankind."

"Neil Armstrong?"

"You know it."

Just then, the professor enters. She's a very jolly type of old lady, with a loud voice and comforting smile to match. She stands in front of the class, happily exclaiming, "Hello students! Oh how I love seeing new faces each year! Anyways, I'm Mrs. Malik, also known a since my first name is Meera, so I'll respond to that as well. Also, everyone likes M n Ms because hello, chocolate. So, I know that you're expecting me to actually teach you stuff, but since today's the first day, I've decided that I'm going to let you all ditch today. But don't let any faculty members catch you or else I will end up in deep shit. So go, enjoy yourselves. Or as Amrish Puri said in DDLJ, 'Jaa, jee le apni zindagi!' With that, she sits down at her desk, while all the students run out before she changes her mind.

Once they're outside, Kriya exclaims, "She's my hero!"

"I love her!" says Taani, in awe.

"Why can't she teach all of our classes?" complains Saara.

"Guys! It's only the first day. Who knows, she could be meaner," says Arjun.

"You're such a pessimist!" Nisha says to him. And like this, another argument ensues between the two. While Saara tries to stop them, Taani and Kriya slowly start to back away, and then run to the canteen.

* * *

In her business management class, Sharon Rai Prakash was still raging, while her friends tried to calm her down. Rey walks in, stopping at the door, and motions for Simmi to get out of her seat. Simmi does so, allowing Rey to sit down beside Sharon.

"Sharon," Rey says in a childish tone, "look what I got for you." Sharon's about to yell, when she sees her favorite Dairy Milk chocolate bar. The sight of the beautiful chocolate bar immediately melts her as she lunges for it.

But Rey's quicker. He moves it as far away from her as possible and says, "First promise me that you won't kill any innocent freshers or new students until  _at least_  the first month of college is over."

Sharon crosses her arms over her chest, and finally huffs, "Fine. Now gimme gimme gimme!" Rey hands her the chocolate bar, which she treats like the greatest thing since sliced bread.

While Sharon's eating her chocolate bar, Vicky leans down and whispers to Rey, "How did you manage to get a chocolate bar?"

"Well, it was pretty easy thanks to yours and Nil's stupidity," he mutters.

"What'd you say?" asks Nil, who was pretty sure he heard his name, along with the word stupidity, which was kind of an everyday occurrence for him, but still.

"Nothing," replies Rey, as he goes into deep thought about how sweet it was of Taani to help him out.

But, strangely enough, his encounter with Kriya kept flashing into his head.

_What the hell?_  he thinks.

Bringing him out of his thoughts was the peon who came in and said, "Professor Gupta had an emergency, so you're all dismissed."

Once the peon leaves, everyone starts cheering and dashes out of the classroom before the peon can come in and be like, 'nope, substitute teacher.'

* * *

Once they're at the canteen, Taani and Kriya sit down, breathing heavily.

"Are you satisfied now? You've been complaining all morning about how I ruined your morning jog, so there, now you just had an afternoon jog," huffs Taani.

"Dude, why are you such a little bubble of anger? You're behaving like Aarav," remarks Kriya, but bites her tongue as she immediately regrets what she had just said.

She's about to apologize when Taani asks, "Di, did you want coffee? I'll get you some coffee." Taani's about to get up and leave, when Kriya grabs her wrist and makes her sit back down.

"No need. I already had my morning coffee, and no, you don't get any."

"But why?"

"Because you're too young," says Kriya, while looking for something in her bag.

"Oh, so I'm not too young to get a tattoo, but I'm too young to drink coffee? Where's the logic in that?!"

"Not everything requires logic."

"Who are you and what the hell have you done with my cousin?"

Kriya chuckles. "Taani, you know you get extremely hyper when you drink coffee. It's not safe for you, or those around you."

"Di, I was just a child back then."

Kriya puts her hand on Taani's shoulder and says, "Sweetie, it was a week ago."

Taani folds her arms across her chest and turns away from Kriya. Kriya bites her lip, trying not to chuckle at her cousin's childishness.

"Well, I guess you don't want to know who I ran into today," says Kriya, hoping to tempt Taani into looking back at her.

Taani turns around, and cautiously asks, "Who?"

"Neha."

As Kriya expected, Taani yells in excitement, "Neha?! Really? I can't wait to meet her!"

Suddenly, Kriya's phone beeps. She checks it and sees a text from Neha.

"Looks like you won't have to wait long," Kriya says when she's done reading her text. "Neha said that her professor had an emergency, so she's been dismissed from class."

"Awesome! You know what di? This has been the greatest day ever! Except for one thing."

"What?"

"I ran into this girl a while ago, and I was going to apologize, but she started being rude to me! It was her fault too!"

"Let me guess? You told her off."

"Yup!"

Kriya chuckles at this and asks, "I wonder if I ran into the same girl?"

"What do you mean?"

"When I was here in the canteen earlier, there was this girl who asked - no  _demanded_ , that I get out of my seat because apparently, it was  _her_  seat. She even had a sticker on it!"

"Let me guess? You threw the sticker away and insulted her."

"Aw, you know me so well Taanu," says Kriya dramatically, wiping away an imaginary tear. Now Taani was the one chuckling.

"Was she by any chance wearing a hot pink dress? And thought that just because her name is Sharon Rai Prakash that she's the most important person in the world?"

"So we did meet the same girl."

"And we both despised her."

"Interesting... very interesting..." says Kriya in her detective's voice, causing both sisters to both burst out laughing at this.

As they're laughing, Taani's eyes fall on Sharon entering the canteen. "Di, look," she says, gesturing to Sharon.

"Oh great, just great!" says Kriya, complaining to her Universeji. Taani starts to giggle, but then she sees Saara going up to Sharon and hugging her.

"Di, complain to your Universeji later," says Taani, bringing her cousin out of her own little world. "Look at that!"

Kriya looks to where Taani's pointing. "What the hell? What's Jwlau doing with her?"

Just then, Taani remembers something. "Di, Sharon said her surname's Rai Prakash, as in the same as Jwalu's, right?"

"Yeah, so?"

"And didn't Jwalu mention that she was staying with her cousin, _Sharon_?"

"Yeah, but what's your point?" Taani just gives her cousin an exasperated look, and then it hits her like a ton of bricks.

"Oh... Sharon is Saara's cousin."

"Yeah." Sometimes, Taani seriously wonders what goes on inside her cousin's head.

"Wait!" Kriya says suddenly, causing Taani to come out of her thoughts.

"What?"

"We can't let Jwalu see us!"

"Why?"

"Because, if Sharon sees us, she might try to pick another fight, and we'll probably end up fighting right back."

"Good point. Even though Jwalu would try and defend us, I don't want her fighting with her cousin."

"Especially because of us," says Kriya, nodding her head in agreement with what Taani said.

"So, how do we avoid her?"

"I honestly don't know."

They stop to think for a minute, until Taani shouts, "Got it!"

"Really?" asks Kriya, with a hopeful look in her eyes.

"Yes! Just put your earbuds in and walk away. Jwalu knows that when you're doing one thing, you're always focused on that one thing."

"And she also knows that you always have your earbuds in at full volume," says Kriya, catching on to her cousin's brilliant idea.

"Alright," says Taani, putting her earbuds in, "go!" The two girls leave at speed of light.

Meanwhile, Saara had gone up to her cousin, without any knowledge that she hated her best-friends and vice versa, and hugged her while gleefully exclaiming, "Hi di!"

"Hi honey. How's your day been going?"

"Eh, it's okay I guess."

"Let me guess? You had Hitler didi for APS?"

"Oh my god, yes! Is that what everyone calls her?"

"Yup."

"Well, the name certainly suits her."

"Yeah, but Anya di said that she does have a softer side. And very cryptically, I might add."

"Was Anya di deaf, blind, brain-washed,  _and_ being threatened at the time?" Sharon bursts out laughing at this, and soon, Saara does too.

From the corner of her eye, Saara sees Taani and Kriya. "Oh my god di, I almost forgot! I wanted to introduce to my two best friends."

"God Saara, you're acting like Vrushi," remarks Sharon, gesturing towards her cousin's child-like behaviour.

"Who cares? Taani and Kriya are the best! But you know what, I'm mad at them."

"Why?"

"Cuz' they're mean," says Saara, folding her arms over her chest and stomping her foot.

"And why are they mean?" asks Sharon, immensely amused by her cousin at the moment.

"Because they left me all alone to play peacemaker between Arjun and Nisha."

"Oh sweetie, if that's the reason, then they're not mean... they're simply intelligent."

"Di!"

"I mean, there isn't enough money and chocolate in the world to make me get in between those two."

Saara sighs. "Okay, so if you're done analyzing my best-friends' intelligence and Nisha and Arjun's constant need to be arguing, then let's -" Saara stops talking when she sees Taani and Kriya leaving with their earbuds on.

"Ugh, damn it!"

"What's wrong?"

"Taani and Kriya just left."

"So what? Just text them."

"Di, when Kriya is doing something, she always focuses on that one thing. Even if her Universeji himself came and stood right in front of her, she wouldn't be distracted. And Taani always listens to her music at full volume. Her music is always so loud, that probably even her Krishnaji can hear it."

Sharon just smiles at how her cousin was describing her two best-friends. "You three are really close, aren't you?"

"Yeah! We're inseparable! Nothing can break us apart!" says Saara, with a vast amount of assurance in her voice.

* * *

As soon as she's far, far away from the canteen, Kriya takes her earbuds out and texts Neha to come meet her. She's putting her phone in her bag, when a masculine chest collides with her. She looks up, and sees that it's the same guy she met that morning.

"Ugh, not you again," they groan in unison, and then glare at each other immediately.

"Are you like out to get me or something? You bumped into me  _twice_  today, and you didn't even bother apologizing!"

Rey rolls his eyes. "If you're going to stand in middle of the corridor, obviously someone's going to bump into you."

"Do you know how to walk  _around_  a person? Because if you don't, you might want to learn. It's kind of a life skill."

Rey just rolls his eyes and starts to walk away, stopping in his tracks when he hears Kriya say, "But then again, you're probably not even capable of doing that."

Rey turns back around, crossing his arms over his chest. "Excuse me?"

"Have you not seen yourself in the mirror? Your chest takes up the whole freaking corridor."

Rey smirks. "Please, you enjoyed the view." Kriya blushes furiously at this and which causes Rey's simple smirk to turn into a full-on Cheshire Cat grin. "Miss Baatcutter is speechless?

"Listen you - you pretty-boy flirt! Don't call me Baatcutter!"

She's about to leave when grabs her wrist and brings her close to him. "And what makes you think that you can call me that?" says Rey, breathing on Kriya's face, who was blushing furiously due to their close proximity and the fact that Rey's hot breath was fanning her face.

Before Kriya could say anything else, she sees Vicky and Neha coming towards them, and as Kriya turns to look at them, Rey turns to look at them as well. He immediately lets go of Kriya and backs away from. Kriya on the other hand, walks towards Neha. Vicky, noticing Kriya's presence, pretends to not even acknowledge Neha, instead walking over to Rey and dragging him away.

When Kriya reaches to where Neha is, Neha asks, "Hey, what time is it?"

"Let me check," says Kriya, as she looks through her front pocket for her phone. She finds her phone, but she doesn't find the other item which was supposed to be in there.

"Oh shit."

"What's wrong?" asks a worried Neha.

"The ring bhai gave me for Raksha Bandhan last year. I can't find it, it's not in my bag. I may not wear it, but I do like to keep it in my bag for good luck."

"Oh, that ring? Um, you're coming from the canteen right? So let's go there."

"No!" yells Kriya, worried that Saara and Sharon were still there.

"Okay..." trails off a very confused Neha. "Let's go check the locker room." With that, the two girls head to the locker room.

* * *

Taani's about to go into the locker room, when she sees two seniors blocking the doorway, attempting to rag a girl who seemed more unimpressed than scared.

"No tattoo, no entry," says one of the seniors.

"Or if you don't want the tattoo, then just wear this bikini around campus for the rest of the week," says another senior.

Now this angers Taani, but she decides to keep her cool as she steps in front of the girl.

"Listen Thing 1 and Thing 2, firstly, ragging is not allowed. Secondly, it's illegal to give a tattoo to someone if you're not professionally trained, which I highly doubt you are. And finally, some of us don't have the luxury of sliding by the college dress code like you may. Now get lost!" The seniors get mad, but quietly walk away.

Taani turns around to face the girl and asks, "Hey, are you okay?"

The girl smiles. "No worries, I'm fine. Thanks for helping me out."

"I guess the shirt wasn't enough to scare them away."

"How did you -" the girl begins to ask, but Taani cuts her off by replying, "It's weird, but I guess I've always just been good at figuring people out."

"All right. Look at me closely, and tell me what you notice."

"Okay." Taani looks at the girl for a good minute or two, and then says, "Your cell phone case. Either it's a raccoon or a badger, but it still shows that you're feisty."

"Raccoon."

"Your mismatched earrings show that there are different sides to your personality. And your nails show your innocent, childish side. If you painted them, then you want to keep you innocence and your childishness alive. If someone else painted them for you, then they just want to remind of who you used to be."

The girl just stares at her in shock. "Wow... a lot of the stuff you said might just be right." Taani just shrugs her shoulders. Just then, Taani sees Kriya walking towards them with a girl she doesn't know.

"Hey Taanu, this is Neha."

"Hey! So nice to finally meet you!" says Taani, hugging Neha.

"Nice to meet you too."

Then Taani remembers the girl standing beside her. She slaps her forehead and turns to the girl beside her. "Oh shit, I am such a jerk! I didn't even ask you what your name is."

The girl just smiles at her and says, "Vrushika."

"Nice to meet you Vrushika, I'm Taani."

"Hello, still here," Kriya says impatiently.

"Oh, sorry di! Vrushika, that's my cousin Kriya, and the girl beside her is our friend Neha."

"Hi."

"Hey," Kriya and Neha say simultaneously.

"Oh, Kriya, we have to find your ring!" exclaims Neha, remembering why they came here in the first place.

"Di, you lost your ring?"

"Yeah... oh god, I am such an idiot! Bhai worked so hard to get those rings for us. He used the money for his new headphones, worked double shifts... and what do I do? I lose the goddamn thing!"

"Hey, relax. We'll find it," Vrushika says in a comforting tone, putting her hand on Kriya's shoulder. Kriya just smiles, and the girls start looking for Kriya's ring.

Half an hour later, the girls have looked everywhere in locker room, but they still couldn't find the ring. "Ugh! Bhai's going to be so upset."

"Di, come on, don't give up. The Kriya Shekhawat I know never gives up."

"Taani's right," says Neha. "We'll look again."

"Yeah, don't be sad," says Vrushika.

"Thanks guys," says Kriya, giving them a weak smile.

Just then, Saara comes in and says, "There you guys are! Kriya, I've called like fifty times already!"

"Sorry, I've just been -" begins Kriya, but Saara cuts her off by saying, "You're looking for your ring, right?"

"Yeah, but how did you know?" asks Taani.

Saara takes Kriya's hand and puts her ring in it. "I found it in the canteen."

"See Kriya. I told you we should've checked the canteen!" says a slightly irritated Neha.

"Guys, we found the ring right?" says Taani, before Saara can start asking why they didn't go back to the canteen. Kriya blinks her eyes at Taani, while Taani blinks back.

"Yeah," says Kriya, "let's go home guys." With that, they all leave to go home.

* * *

"Ugh, finally this day is over!" says Saara, as she enters the house.

"Is she going to be like this every day?" asks Sharon.

"Yup," replies Arjun.

"Whatever," says Saara, as she heads to her room. "I'm going to go take a shower."

Just as Saara goes into her room and closes the door, Rey comes into the house.

"You guys might want to lock the door next time," he says as he locks the door behind him.

"Okay, dude, we literally just got home," says Sharon.

"Whatever. Where's Saara?"

"I'm insulted Rey! I thought I was your best-friend!"

"Sharon, I love you, but I see you every day. I barely get to see Saara anymore, and now we're in the same college. I want to see her! I missed her so much."

Sharon sighs. "She's in her room taking a shower. Don't go in."

"Oh please, she's never cared before."

"Listen to di Rey," warns Vrushika. "Saara might throw things at you."

"Sharp things. Or maybe, and this is only if she's in a good mood so a  _big_ maybe, then heavy things," adds Arjun. But Rey doesn't listen to any of them. He just wants to see his best-friend.

He goes into her room, and lies down on her bed. He gets out his phone, and starts to play 'Piano Tiles.'

A good half hour later, Saara comes out of the bathroom, in her bathrobe, thank god, and sees Rey lying down on her bed playing 'Temple Run.' What, you can't expect him to play the same game for half an hour.

"Rey, what the hell are you doing here?"

"Oh hey Saara," Rey says casually, saving his game and turning his phone off.

"Didn't anyone tell you that I was in the shower?"

"Yeah," says Rey, getting off her bed.

"Then why the hell are you in here?"

"Well, you never seemed to have a problem with it before."

"Okay, we were like ten. Now get out!"

"But I want to talk to you!"

"You can talk to me after I change."

"No." Saara throws her arms up in the air in frustration.

"Fine! Have it your way." She takes her clothes out of her cupboard and stomps off to the bathroom.

Ten minutes later, Saara comes out of the bathroom, cursing Rey using every single word that Smriti Aunty ever taught her.

"What do want to talk to me about?" demands Saara, clearly pissed off at her stupid best-friend.

"Nothing major really," Rey says casually, as if Saara wouldn't murder him if she heard what he said next, "I just wanted to see if you'd actually do what I say."

Okay, now that got the volcano to erupt.

"Rey I'm gonna' kill you!" screams Saara, as she throws all her pillows at him one by one. Rey jumped off of Saara's bed, trying not to get attacked by pillows.

"Stand still Egghead!"

Rey stops and demands, his voice dangerously low, "Did you just call me Egghead?"

"Um, yes..." says Saara, then bites her tongue because she remembers how pissed Rey gets with his nicknames. "I mean no!"

Too late! Rey pushes Saara on her bed, so she's lying down on her stomach, while Rey's holding her arms behind her back.

"Ah! Rey let go!"

"First take back what you said."

"Fine! You're not an Egghead," says Saara, gritting her teeth together.

"And say Rey is the best."

"In your dreams and my nightmares!" Rey holds her arms back tighter causing her to reluctantly mumble, "Rey is the best." Rey lets go of her, and as soon as she gets up Saara says "Rey is best stupid-idiot-gadha-moron in this whole universe and beyond!"

Saara runs away from Rey with him shouting, "Saara I will destroy you!" as he chased after her.

Ah best-friends! Aren't they just the  _best_?

* * *

As soon as Taani and Kriya come home, Swayam starts bombarding them with questions. "Where were you guys? You're over an hour late!" yells Swayam, clearly worried about his sisters. Now he's not one to be your typical average protective older brother, but his sisters were late, and they didn't even call, so he was bound to be worried.

Taani and Kriya look at each other guiltily and say, "Sorry bhai."

Swayam tries to calm himself down. "It's fine. I'll be in my room if you need me."

Once he's marched off to his room, slamming the door shut in the process, Kriya groans. "Great, now bhai's mad at us."

"I know what could put him in a better mood."

"What?"

"Palak paneer and rasgulle. I'll make the palak paneer, you get out the rasgulle."

After they're done, Taani and Kriya take the food to the table. Swayam bolts out of his room when he caught whiff of his two most favorite things in the whole universe and beyond.

"Palak paneer and rasgulle!" he screams, hugging his sisters and then sitting down to eat. Taani and Kriya smile at each other and walk away.

Kriya knocks on her mom's bedroom door and hears a voice say, "Come in."

Kriya and Taani go in and Taani says, "We come bearing food." Kriya puts a plate with a cheese sandwich, along with a cup of coffee, on her desk.

"This is dinner?"

"Yup," says Taani. "We made palak paneer for bhai."

"And gave him rasgulle."

"Ah," says Smriti knowingly. "Well, thank you for the lovely dinner girls. Goodnight!"

"Goodnight mom!" Kriya says, while at the same time, Taani says, "Goodnight maasi!"

Heading into their rooms, Kriya sits at their shared desk with her sandwich and her diary, while Taani sits up on her bed, back against the headboard, with her sandwich and some random notebook. Kriya puts in her earbuds, tapping her foot to the music, while Taani raps along to Nicki Minaj's Superbass.

Taani's POV

"This one is for the boys with the booming system. Top down, AC with the cooling system," I rap silently, trying not to bother my cousin, as I write about my day in one of my random notebooks. I wish I could be as organized as my cousin. I always end up losing the random notebooks and pieces of papers I write on. I chuck the thought away and continue writing.

_Dear weird notebook that I'll probably never see again,_

_Today was a good day. I didn't really like my APS professor, but my Economics professor was the coolest! And she quoted DDLJ! Ooo, and I finally got to meet Neha! Oh my god, so many exclamation points..._

_Oh, and I met this really nice girl named Vrushika. She's Jwalu's cousin. Speaking of Jwalu's cousins... I hate her older cousin! She's so mean and so rude. And if Jwalu ever introduces her to me and di, cuz' di hates her too, all hell will break loose. But you know, Sharon's not the only mean one. All these stupid seniors are ridiculous with their pranks and ragging. It's ridiculous!_

_But there was this one guy who was nice... what's his name again? Right, Rey! That's his name. Alright, we did get off on the wrong foot, but it was so sweet of him to help me out. I hope my chocolate helped him calm his friend down._

Kriya's POV

I tap my foot along, not to the beat of the song I'm listening to, but my cousin's rapping. I know she's trying really hard to be quiet, and not bother me, but it's not working. I appreciate the effort though. I try to think about how to describe my day, while Taani's probably halfway done. The perks of being a songwriter I guess. I shake my head, and finally begin writing.

_Dear Diary,_

_Today was the absolute best day ever! Okay, maybe not exactly the best. I didn't really like my APS professor, but whatever. I'm good student so it doesn't matter. Ooo, then I got to eat a cucumber cream cheese sandwich, courtesy of the great Nisha Sen. And I finished reading my book!_

_But you know what? When I was in the canteen, this girl came up to me and said to get out of her seat. The nerve! But I sure told her off._

_And then I finally got to meet Neha face to face! It was just the best._

_But after that, this really rude guy bumped into me and didn't even apologize. Maybe he and the rude girl are friends..._

_After that, we all had Economics and I loved the professor. But then as usual, Nisha and Arjun got in a fight, Saara tried to get them to stop, and me and Taani ran for the hills. Same old, same old!_

_After that, Taani and I had some much needed one on one time. You know, sister bonding! But then we found out that Saara and Sharon (rude girl) are cousins! Taani and I quickly ran away before Saara could call us over to introduce us to her cousin. Then, once I was far, far away from the canteen, I texted Neha to meet me there, but that guy bumped into me again! Why me? Of all the people in that humongous college that he could've bumped into, why did he have to keep bumping into me? Oh, and you know what? Instead of saying sorry to me, he sassed me. And he called me baatcutter again! That bloody pretty-boy flirt! I seriously need a better name for him..._

_Anyways, then Neha came, and I realized that my ring was missing, so we went to the girls' locker room look for it. There, we saw Taani, and another girl, who turned out to be Saara's cousin Vrushika. They helped Neha and I look for the ring, and were super supportive when I started to give up. Just then, Saara came in, and it turns out that she had my ring with her. Finally, we all went home. So this day had its ups and downs, but it was a good day. We can't always have perfect days now can we?_

Narrator's POV

Swayam comes into his sisters' rooms and sees them peacefully writing about their day. He decides to disturb the peace and irritate them a little. He takes Kriya's diary from her and says, "Kriya Shekawat, the Junior Rani Laxmibai, has a diary? As in an object used to write down your feelings and emotions?"

"What the hell bhai? Give it back!"

Now this gets Taani's attention.

She puts her notebook aside, and gets up. She takes the diary from Swayam's hand. "Bhai, don't irritate my di."

She's a very protective sister.

"Taani, don't try to be scary, it doesn't suit you," says Swayam, sticking his tongue out.

"What did you say to my sister?" demands Kriya, as she gets a pillow and whacks Swayam.

She's also a very protective sister.

Taani puts Kriya's diary on the desk, and takes a pillow to help her whack Swayam.

So, the moral of the story  _here_ is, don't mess with your best-friend, especially if her nickname is Jwalamukhi. And do not, under any circumstances, mess with your sisters. Especially if they're nicknames are Junior Rani Laxmibai and Jhansi ki Rani.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I forgot to mention this earlier, but Professor Meera is also one of my OCs, and if you're wondering whether or not she is related to Professor Ananya from Chapter 3, I actually don't know because I didn't notice until now. I'm an idiot, honestly, I wrote this four years ago and I'm only now noticing that I gave Ananya and Meera the same last names. Honestly, I don't deserve to be a high school graduate, I'm such a moron.
> 
> Musical Inspiration: Jaane Kyun from the movie Dostana


	6. Dazzlers vs Weaklings

"Princess hurry up! We're going to be late!" shouts Kriya.

"I'm coming, I'm coming. Calm down woman!" says Taani, walking into the living room while trying to put her earrings on. "And di, Saara, and Arjun aren't even here yet. Why are you getting so hyper? Stop it okay. It's not healthy."

"That's just it Taanu! They're late, and top of that, they're not answering their phones. I'm getting worried."

"Honestly di, you worry too much."

Just then, the girls hear a loud honk and go outside to find Arjun's car parked there.

"Guys, why -" Kriya starts to say, but stops when she sees Arjun. She, along with Taani, bursts out laughing.

"Arjun, what the hell happened to you?" Taani asks, trying to control her laughter.

"Not. Another. Word." Taani and Kriya slide into the backseat, still giggling, while Arjun starts the car.

"What happened to your brother?" Kriya asks Saara.

"Long story."

"We've got time," says Taani, prompting Saara to continue.

Approximately one hour ago at the Rai Prakash house, Saara was trying, and failing, to wake up her cousin Vrushika.

"Di, Vrushi's not waking up! I give up, you give it a try!"

"Alright, alright! Go into the kitchen while I try to wake up Queen Victoria over there." She enters Vrushika's room, and shouts, "Vrushika Rai Prakash, if you don't get up right now, I will dump a bucket of hot water on you!"

Vrushika gets up immediately at the sound of Sharon's voice, proceeding to ask, "Don't people normally use cold water?"

"This is Mumbai sweetie. Cold water is God's gift here, while hot water is his greatest mistake." Sharon waltzes out of Vrushika's room, but pops her head back in to say, "Plus, I'm Sharon, and you're Vrushika." She then walks away to go help Saara in the kitchen.

As Sharon enters the kitchen, Saara asks her, "So di, what are we making?"

"Pancakes."

"Okay, where's the mix?"

"Oh, we're not using the mix." Saara looks at her cousin as if she's grown three heads, and suddenly developed scales and gills.

"The girl burns water, and now she wants to make pancakes without the pancake mix?" Saara mutters under her breath, wondering if her cousin was actually aware that she's a complete and utter disaster in the kitchen.

"Did you say something?"

"Nope."

Vrushika happily skips into the kitchen, completely unaware of what horrors await her. "Hey guys! What are we making?"

"Pancakes," replies an oddly cheerful Sharon.

"Cool, where's the mix?"

"We're not using the mix," replies Saara, gritting her teeth together as psychotic smile adorns her face.

Vrushika's reaction is very similar to that of Saara's.

Vrushika goes up to Saara and whispers, "Has she finally cracked?"

"Yup."

"You know that we're doomed right?"

"Yup."

"Guys, come help me!" exclaims Sharon.

The girls go up to their cousin and ask, "Where's the recipe book?"

"Oh, we don't need a recipe book. I googled it on my phone." Saara and Vrushika simultaneously think,  _Death by pancake_ , when they hear what their crazy older cousin had just said.

"Okay, so," begins Sharon, reading the recipe on her phone, "in a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar."

"What does sift mean?" asks Saara.

"And why is the recipe telling us to use salt?" asks Vrushika.

"Sift is probably just some fancy way of saying stir, and you know what, we just won't use the salt. I mean, who puts salt in pancakes?" says Sharon, getting out the ingredients. Vrushika and Saara look at each other, and shrug their shoulders, deciding to go along with it.

"Okay, next it says... make a well in the center and pour in the milk, eggs, and melted butter," says Sharon.

"A well?" questions Saara. "What the hell does a  _well_ have to do with making pancakes?"

"Ooo, I don't want melted butter," says Vrushika, making a disgusted face.

"Alright then," says an exasperated Sharon, "we'll just dump in some milk and eggs since there are no specific measurements."

After putting all the ingredients in the bowl, Vrushika stirs, because she doesn't trust Saara or Sharon to do it. Once Vrushika's finished stirring, she hands the bowl to Saara to take to the frying pan. As Saara's walking towards the frying pan, she slips on some egg yolk, and the bowl goes flying…

And falls right on top of Arjun's head. Poor guy. He just came in for some food.

Now, back to the open roads of Mumbai which are being filled with the laughter of the Shekhawat sisters.

"Aw, poor Arjun," says Kriya.

"You guys should really give up on this cooking thing," says Taani.

"She's right."

"Thanks for the support guys," drawls Saara.

"Okay, okay," says Kriya, holding her arms up in surrender, "sorry. But how come Arjun still has pancake batter on him?"

"Because you kept texting me to hurry up!"

"Then might I suggest buying a hose?" Taani decides to add oh so helpfully. Arjun glares at her, and keeps driving, as Taani innocently says, "What? It's a good investment to make."

Once they arrived at college, the foursome makes their way to APS. As they enter the class, Saara mumbles, "What's Hitler didi gonna' bitch about today?" causing the others' eyes to go wide, sincerely hoping that Professor Ananya hadn't heard what their stupid friend had just said.

After class, they head to the canteen. On the way, Saara yells, "I hate her!" at the top of her lungs.

"Will a carrot muffin make you feel better?" asks Kriya, putting her arm around Saara's shoulder.

"Yes," says Saara, pouting like a little kid as she rests her head on Kriya's shoulder.

When they reach the canteen, they see that it's half empty.

Landing their eyes on Swayam and his friends, they walk up to them. Once there, Taani asks, "Where is everybody?"

"All the Dazzlers are in the auditorium," says a girl Taani and Kriya don't recognize. "Hi, I'm Aashi."

"I'm Taani," Taani then gestures towards her cousin, "and this is Kriya."

"And I'm assuming you already know Saara and Arjun, right?" asks Kriya.

"Smart girl."

"But why are all the Dazzlers in the auditorium?" asks Arjun.

Aashi rolls her eyes. "To watch the great Team Dazzlers dance."

"They represent our college at all the dance competitions," explains Neha.

"Is there really such a severe lack of dancers here? Because I was told that this was the dance capital," says a very confused Kriya.

"Well, according to Sharon, only Dazzlers can participate in dancing, singing, acting, and sports, while Weaklings can only do all the academic stuff," says Bharat.

"What utter bullshit!" exclaims Taani. "Who the hell does she think she is?!"

"Exactly!" exclaims Kriya, sharing her cousin's anger. "Come on. We'll show her."

"Kriya, Weaklings aren't allowed," Neha points out.

"Weaklings not allowed my foot!" she yells.

"Yeah, it's high time someone put Miss Sharon Rai Prakash in her place!" Taani states firmly, nodding her head in agreement.

"Trust me babes, they're not going to let you through," Aashi informs them. "Love the determination though. Keep it up!"

"Oh hell yeah they're going to let us through!" declares Saara, finally speaking up. "After all, they wouldn't dare question Sharon Rai Prakash's younger cousin."

The three girls and Arjun turn around to leave, with Arjun asking, "Are you guys coming or what?"

Swayam, Aashi, Neha, and Bharat all look at each other. Aashi gets up to follow them. Bharat and Neha get up next. They all look at Swayam.

"Bhai?" Kriya and Taani say simultaneously, sending questioning glances at their older brother. Swayam looks at his sisters and sighs. As much as he loves Sharon, his sisters are everything to him. He gets up and follows them to the auditorium.

Kriya's POV

As we walk to the auditorium, I'm worried about Saara's reaction to Taani and I putting Sharon in her place. She loves and respects Sharon a lot, and to see me and Taani going up against her like this? Well, it could really strain our friendship, and I really don't want to lose Saara as a friend. She's always been there for me, to support me, to keep my anger in check. She was the one who's always understood what it felt like to have your dad leave you. She was the one who'd patiently listen to my random ranting. And although I hate it when she makes me watch horror movies with her, she's crazy, sweet, down-to-earth, and I love her.

As we enter the auditorium, a wave of nervousness passes through me. What if Sharon is a really good dancer? What if I make a complete fool out of myself for going up against her? I look up at the stage as Sharon starts dancing.

Taani's POV

As we walk to the auditorium, I can't help thinking about Saara's reaction to all this. Sure I'm worried about what Arjun, and even Vrushika think of me, but Saara's my best-friend, and I don't ever want to lose her. She's the one who's always been able to read me like an open book. Whether it's something about my mom, my dad, Aarav, or even Ruhi, I know she'll always be the first one to notice. She understood how I felt when Aarav left, in a way that no one else could. She put with my crying and drowning my sorrows in chocolate ice-cream every night for at least two months! Bottom line is, she's always stood by me like a true blue friend, and hurting her is the last thing I want to do.

As we enter the auditorium, a strange feeling washes over me as Sharon begins to dance. I don't know what that feeling is, but I sure as hell don't like it.

Saara's POV

I can't do this! That's what I keep thinking over and over again as we walk towards the auditorium.

I love Taani and Kriya. They were there for with all the drama in my life. Whether it was my dad, or Karan, they were there for me. They encouraged me, talked me out of doing stupid and dangerous things, and even though they could've just left me to go and make new friends, and have a new beginning, they decided to stand by me. And I agree with them that what Sharon di is doing is ridiculous.

I love my Sharon di! She's always treated me as her own child, and I will always respect and admire her for all she does. But this whole Dazzler-Weakling divide she created is only going to end up hurting her in the end. All I know is, things are going to get ugly.

Arjun's POV

This is all so insane! Dazzlers? Weaklings? Why hasn't anyone told me about any of this? And Sharon di? I thought she was above divides and separations. What is going on? But no matter what happens, I know Taani and Kriya can handle her. Maybe even change her. No matter what, I'm going to support them all the way.

Neha's POV

Bhagwanji, please save Taani and Kriya. I know that they're both headstrong and determined, but Sharon is a lioness! She will eat them alive. They don't know who they're dealing with here. Sharon Rai Prakash is dangerous when angered.

Aashi's POV

A feeling of nostalgia washes over me as we enter the auditorium. I used to be performing with Sharon and the others. We would all perform together, back in the good old days. I miss those days... when we were all friends. I hope Kriya, Taani, and Saara can change this.

Swayam's POV

I'm so confused. Who do I support here? My baby sisters... or Sharon, the girl I've been in love with since 9th standard. Ever since the first day I saw her walk through the doors of Royal Academy, she was like a burst of energy and happiness. But she was broken on the inside. What I wouldn't give to take all that pain away.

But my sisters... they irritate me, they pull my legs, they drive me insane. That's just how little sisters are! They've been there for me through thick and thin. Kriya, my actual sister, who knows me inside and out. Taani, my cousin sister, who cares for me, and scolds me for my stupidity. I want to protect them both, but I also want to protect Sharon.

Why can't this divide be over? Why can't it just end?

Narrator's POV

After watching Sharon's dance, everyone starts to clap, except for the Weaklings. Sharon smirks at the applause, but her smirk soon fades when she sees some of her least favorite people in the front row. "What the hell are you Weaklings doing here?!" she demands, outraged as she gets off the stage, not even noticing her younger cousins.

"Oh, we're simply just watching your dance, Sharon. Please continue," says a sarcastic Taani. Kriya tries her best not to laugh.

"Listen, you idiots are new here, so let me explain to you how this college works. You have the Dazzlers, and the Weaklings. Dazzlers are superior to Weaklings, and therefore have more privileges. If any Dazzler decides to befriend a Weakling or fall in love with a Weakling, then they become Weaklings, and are picked on more than regular Weaklings."

"Oh, so you're what? The Head Dazzler? Queen Bee? Ringmaster?" asks Taani, in the most innocent voice she can muster. Kriya looks at her sister strangely. Sure Taani always stands up to bullies, but she's never said anything like this. She's more of a 'fight fire with anything  _but_  fire' type of person.

"You don't know who you're messing with Freshling!"

Taani raises an eyebrow, amused, that small action of hers aggravating Sharon to no end. "Freshling? As in Fresher and Weakling combined? Wow! How long did it take you to come up with that one?" She then takes a step forward, coming toe to toe with Sharon. "And you know what? The whole 'ling' ending thing is  _so_ not working for you. First Weaklings, and now Freshlings? Kinda' reminds me of the word Fledglings. You know, a human who's just been turned into a vampire. And since you're a Dazzler, therefore 'superior,' that would kind of make you a vampire. And since you're kind of like the "queen" of all Dazzlers, wouldn't that make you a vampire queen? And if that's what you're trying to be, then you're definitely headed in the right direction. Those blood-red pumps totally scream vampire queen,  _Vampira_."

Everyone in the auditorium is shocked by Taani's long speech, especially the people who actually know her. They're all thinking the same thing:  _"This is not the Taani that we know."_

Sharon, on the other hand, is pissed. "What the hell do you think of yourself huh?!"

"I'm just voicing my opinion Miss Rai Prakash," Taani continues, her voice booming throughout the auditorium, "and if even that is a crime in  _your_ college, then this place is no better than prison. You are not our mother, you are not our father, you are not an authority figure, and if I recall, your  _dad_  is the one who's on the board of directors, not you. We are not pieces of clothing, or jewelry that you own, or gadgets that you can control. You have no right to dictate  _our_ choices,  _our_ feelings,  _our_ emotions, and most importantly,  _our_  lives. And it's high time you realize it."

"And you think you're such a great dancer because you're rich and you've had the best training known to humanity?" Kriya adds, her adrenaline pumping thanks to Taani knocking Sharon down a peg or two. "No matter how much training a person can have, dance comes from your heart and your soul. Dance is pure, and all about  _raw talent_. Using it to prove your superiority? That goes against everything that dance and dancers should stand for."

Sharon raises an eyebrow at Kriya, mocking her. "Oh, so you think that  _you_ can show  _me_  what dance is?"

Kriya narrows her eyes at the older girl. "Watch me." She gets on stage, shouting, "Music!" before she starts to dance.

Sharon is in awe of Kriya's dance, but quickly snaps out of it. "Not bad... but not good either. If you really want to prove that you're a good dancer, then create your own dance team and try to beat Team Dazzlers at the Footloose competition.  _If_  any of your pathetic friends know how to dance that is."

"I'm going to join her team," says Aashi, speaking up from behind Sharon, causing Sharon to whip around in shock, "and you  _know_  how good of a dancer I am."

"Bharat and I are also joining," adds Neha.

"Nice, but you still need two more boys," Sharon points out, smirking.

But her smirk wears off when Kriya says, "If I'm not mistaken, you guys are in search of a female dancer, Miss Rai Prakash." Kriya then proceeds to jump off the stage, coming nose to nose with Sharon. "Watch your back,  _Sharon_ , because Team Weaklings, is going to take you down!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Musical Inspiration: Walking On Sunshine by Aly & AJ, The Reason by Hoobastank and Problem by Natalia Kills


	7. Sibling Squabbles

Saara's POV

As the Weaklings begin to leave, Sharon di grabs my arm and demands, "Where are you going?"

"Um..." I trail off, nervous as to whether or not I should tell my cousin the truth. I look at my friends' 'what are you going to do?' faces, then and look back at di.

I take a deep breath. "I'm going with my friends, di."

"You friends?!" she practically shrieks at the top of her lungs, eyebrows skyrocketing to her hairline, as if it's the most ridiculous thing she's ever heard.

"Yes di," I state firmly, releasing my arm from her grip, "my friends."

And in 3, 2, 1…

"Have you gone mad?!"

There we go, now Siren's awake.

"Saara, how could you be friends with these people?!" She looks shell-shocked.

" _These people_ are my friends, di!"

From behind me, I can hear Taani whisper, "Take cover, the volcano's about to erupt."

"Sharon better choose her words carefully," says Kriya.

"Friends who will one day abandon you and leave when you've served your purpose! I'm just trying to protect -"

"You don't need to protect me from my friends, di! You don't know anything about them, or about our friendship, so that gives you no right to tell me that they're bad news. You have no idea what we've been through together. They were there for me when I cried about dad, they were there for me I got my heart broken. They scold me, they yell at me, they stop me from doing stupid things, and I trust them with my life! I love and respect you di, I really do. But I'm not going to let you tell me who I can and can't be friends with."

I walk out with my friends, linking my arms with theirs, leaving my cousin confused and angry.

Narrator's POV

"Okay, everybody, leave!" shouts Simmi, but when she sees Nil and Vicky leaving, she groans exasperatedly, "Not you guys!"

After everybody leaves, Sharon takes a deep breath, and screams at the top of her lungs, ready and willing to damage her vocal cords. "How could Saara be so stupid?! Friends?  _Best_ -friends?! My foot! Doesn't she know that in the end she's just going to end up getting hurt?" She sits down on an auditorium seat, while Simmi and Rey sit on either side of her, with Vicky and Nil sitting behind them.

"Sharon, we know you're just trying to look out for Saara, but she's a smart and sensible girl. Not to mention, an extremely good judge of character," says Simmi, trying to make her stubborn best-friend understand the situation.

"I know Simmi but -" begins Sharon, but gets cut off by Simmi who asks, "You just don't want it to be  _them_ , right?"

Sharon nods her head, prompting Vicky to ask, "What's so special about them?"

"Remember the two girls from yesterday?" asks Simmi.

"Yeah... oh! It's them isn't it?" says Nil.

"Taani and Kriya. Although, I still don't know which witch is which."

Finally, Rey speaks up. "Taani was the one lecturing you, and Kriya was the one dancing."

They all stare at him weirdly, causing Rey to explain, "I met them yesterday. I knew Taani's name, so I kind of figured that the other girl is Kriya."

"But how do  _you_  know Taani's name?" asks Nil.

"Well, you see, because of that prank you and Vicky pulled yesterday, she ended up going into the boy's locker room, then we argued, then I helped her switch the signs back, and then she gave me the chocolate bar that I gave to Sharon. Yeah, I think that's it."

"You were the one who changed the signs back?" demands Nil, while Vicky exclaims, "Dude, why?" Sharon and Simmi hit them on the head.

"But Sharon, trust me, Taani's not that bad. Kriya on the other hand... well, she's something!"

"Something?" Vicky asks, curious as he raises his eyebrows, while Rey glares at him.

Just then, Sharon's phone buzzes, and she sees that it's RDX telling her to make an announcement for the fresher's party. "Gotta' go guys. Bye!" says Sharon, running off to the main office.

Outside the auditorium, Saara hears someone shouting her name, causing her to turn around and find her cousin and Nisha running towards her. When they reach them, Vrushika asks, worried due to what she had just witnessed, "Are you okay?"

Saara smiles at Vrushika, placing her hand on her cousin's shoulder and squeezing it - her way of assuring her that she was absolutely fine.

"You know, what you said to Sharon di could actually turn out to be a good thing," Nisha points out.

"How so?" asks Aashi.

"Because it could kind of clear up the confusion in her mind," explains Nisha.

"Confusion?" questions Kriya.

"Yeah," says Neha, "Remember what I told you yesterday?"

"Oh right!" says Kriya, now remembering.

"Anyone want to tell me?" asks Taani.

"Let's just say that Sharon has been through quite a lot, and right now, she's really confused about what's wrong and what's right," explains Swayam.

Suddenly, everyone covers their ears due to the squeak coming from the PA system.

"My ears!" Arjun yells dramatically as Nisha slaps him on the head.

"Good morning !" Sharon's voice rings out through the PA system, happy and cheerful, not a speck of her divatude evident. "It's me, Sharon, your beloved Cultural Secretary, here to tell you guys about tonight's fresher's party! Anyone who's not a fresher, but still wants to help out at the party, can come to the auditorium at after school at four. Freshers, remember to look your best, and be ready to have some fun! And remember, the party starts at seven in the evening, and yes, couple entry is required."

Once Sharon's done, Taani asks, "So... Sharon's the cultural secretary?"

"Yeah... and she's damn good at what she does," says a starry-eyed Swayam. Taani and Kriya look at their brother weirdly, deciding to ask him about this later.

"Kriya, were you serious about creating a dance team for Footloose?" asks Bharat.

"Yeah. If you guys don't want to join the team then I can always find other dancers."

"No, we want to join!" Aashi is quick to say. "I miss dancing."

"Well, you guys still need two more members," says Taani, "and they have to be guys as you guys already have one boy and three girls."

"Where does it say that?" asks Kriya.

"In the rules. I'm looking at them on my phone." Taani continues to read the rules off her phone. "Okay, so auditions involve dance teams from colleges within the four corners of India; so that's east, west, north, and south. From each of these zones, there will be five teams competing in the first round, and from each of these five teams, three teams will be eliminated. So, in total, we're going to have eight teams in the finals."

"What else is there?" asks Saara. Taani reads out more of the rules as the others listen carefully.

Soon, it was time to go home.

* * *

"Hey bhai?" asks Taani in her oh so innocent voice once they arrive home.

"Yeah Princess?" asks the innocent, oblivious Swayam.

"What's going on with you and Sharon?"

"Whaaat?" asks Swayam, sweat starting to trickle down his face.

Kriya simply rolls her eyes. "Oh please! Everybody saw the way you were looking at her, you Roadside Romeo."

Taani, ignoring her sister, pouts in her brother's direction. "Come on bhai! Please tell us."

Swayam gives in immediately. "Okay fine! Let's go to my room."

Kriya just stares at her sister and says, once Swayam is out of earshot of course, "Taani Shekhawat, you are a conniving little emotional blackmailer, and I love you!" as she hugs her sister.

After making a dangerous trip through the Forest of Decay, Taani and Kriya sit down on Swayam's bed, which was like a light at the end of a dark tunnel... so basically the only non-lethal part of his room.

"So Mr. Majnu," begins Kriya, getting comfortable on her brother's bed, "tell us about your Laila."

Swayam sighs, realizing that there's no way out of this.

Sisters. Can't live with them, can't keep secrets from them.

"Well, I've been in love with Sharon since ninth standard. Ever since that first day she smiled at me, I started feeling something for her. Her smile, her love for her friends, her dance... but there's also another side to Sharon that not a lot of people get to see. Her vulnerable side. I just want to protect her, and always make her smile."

Kriya looks at her brother and says, "I get it bhai. She was once a really sweet girl. But after all this, how can you still be in love with her?"

Taani nods in agreement. "Yeah bhai. She might've been all those things once upon a time, but not anymore. Do you not see how she's been treating everybody?"

"I don't care! That old Sharon is inside her, I know it! Now Kriya, what did you want to ask me before?"

"Oh, just if you'd join team Weaklings. I mean, you're such a great dancer bhai, and this way, it'll be less work for us," says Kriya, her face lighting up with one of her rare hopeful looks.

"Kriya, did you not just hear what I said? I love Sharon! I can't go against her."

"But bhai -" Kriya starts to protest, shocked at what her brother just said, but Swayam cuts her off by saying, "No buts Kriya. I'm not joining the team." Kriya wipes away the tear starting to fall from her eyes, and runs to her room, as a furious Taani turns to face her brother.

The Jhansi ki Rani has been awoken.

"What the hell bhai?! How could flat out refuse her like this? Did you see the look on her face? Has your little sister ever looked so hopeful of something to you? This is one of those rare times when she'll reach out to you and ask for help, knowing that you'll help her. But you? You decide to abandon your sister in her time of need because of  _Sharon_? The girl who won't give you the time of day and treats other people like crap? I have never been so disappointed in you in my entire life!"

Taani storms out of Swayam's room angrily, making her way to Kriya's.

Kriya's POV

I can't believe that bhai would do something like this to me. We've always supported each other in everything we've done. We were there for each other when our dad left, and we took care of each other while mom tried to get herself together. He'd be there to tell off all the mean girls who tried to put me down, while I was there to beat up all the macho oxen he had to deal with. We'd always go to each other for help, and we've been pillars in each other's lives - always ready when the other needs a shoulder to lean on. But now, because of his love for Sharon, he's not going to be there for me when I need him the most? Does my brother really love her that much that he would go against me? His own flesh and blood? Is love really more important than family?

Narrator's POV

Taani comes in and sits beside her cousin on the floor, at the foot of her bed, breaking her out of her thoughts. Kriya quickly begins to wipe away her tears.

"Di, stop. I know you like to show that you're strong, and I know that you're strong, but crying is healthy. It doesn't make you weak." This causes Kriya to break down, to let it all out, to cry even harder as she holds onto her sister for dear life.

Taani strokes her cousin's hair as she softly says, "Hush, it's okay. Bhai's just being an idiot right now, but he'll come around eventually." Kriya starts laughing at this, breaking away from the hug.

"Hey, you know what we should do?" Taani says suddenly.

"What?"

"We should go rollerblading! You've been begging me to teach you how to rollerblade for years. Come on, let's go!"

"I don't know Princess, the party's in two hours," protests Kriya, who was actually nervous about rollerblading. Sure she'd been excited all these years, but now a fear had overtaken her.

"So? We'll be there for half an hour max! And it doesn't take either of us more than fifteen minutes to get ready. Now come on, let's go change!"

"Change?"

"Trust me when I say this: shorts are going to be much more comfortable than jeans." Kriya sighs, smiling at her little sister's excitement. How could she say no to Taani when she's only doing this to cheer her up? Plus, she's excited, and crushing her spirits would make Kriya feel like running over a newborn puppy. With a tractor.

Ten minutes later, Kriya is still waiting for Taani to finish getting ready. "Princess, are you ready yet?"

"Coming!" yells Taani, running into the living room. "I'm here, let's go!"

"Wait, is that bhai's shirt?"

"Yeah. I gave it him for his birthday, knowing he wouldn't wear it, so I could wear it later."

"You're evil."

"Hey, unlike you, I try to hide my evil schemes."

"Hey, I hide my evil schemes."

"You gave bhai an 'I heart Harry Styles' sweatshirt for his birthday."

Kriya pretends to look at her watch and says, "Well would you look at the time? We're getting late." As Kriya drags Taani out the door, Taani protests, "You're not even wearing a watch!"

Once they're at the roller-blading rink, Taani says, "Okay, let me go rent us some roller-blades and gear." As Kriya gets out some money, Taani stops her. "This is my treat remember? I'm paying."

"But Taani, your new guitar -" Kriya begins to protest, but Taani cuts her off, "Di, it's no big deal!"

After the girls put on their blades and gear, they start to get up. Taani gets up with no problem, but Kriya falls down right away.

_Na... nan nan na na na_

_Nan nan na na na_

_Nan nan na naaa..._

_Naa... nan nan na na na_

_Nan nan na na na_

_Nan nan na naaa…_

Taani tries to help her sister get up, but ends up falling in the process.

The two sisters look at each other and burst out laughing.

_Yaaro jee bhar ke jee le pal_

_Lagta hai aaj kal_

_Daur apna aayega_

_Yaaro jo khud pe ho yakeen_

_Toh zindagi haseen_

_Tujhe kal bulayega_

Taani gets up, and helps Kriya get up again, but makes sure that they don't fall again.

"Relax di" she says, trying to calm her sister's nerves, and slowly helps her skate forward, while she goes backward.

_Yaaro jee bhar ke jee le pal_

_Lagta hai aaj kal_

_Daur apna aayega_

_Yaaro jo khud pe ho yakeen_

_Toh zindagi haseen_

_Tujhe kal bulayega_

Kriya frowns, as she's still wobbly. Noticing her sister's concern, Taani says "Think of this as learning a new dance style. Relax and follow the teacher. Me!"

_(Hai junoon ooonnn_

_Hai junoon sa jeene mein_

_(Hai junoon sa jeene mein)_

_Hai junoon ooonnn_

_Hai junoon sa seene mein ) - 2_

As her sister starts to get the hang of things, Taani starts to go faster, and faster, and faster.

She lets go of one of her sister's hands, then slowly lets go of the other. She smiles as her sister speeds away, not even noticing that Taani has let go of her.

She skates after her sister, and they see who can skate faster.

_Nan na na na_

_Nan nan na na na_

_Nan nan na naaa…_

Kriya, frustrated that Taani's going faster than her, skates up behind her, and jumps on her. This results to both girls falling on the ground.

***Music***

Taani grabs her water bottle and sprays some water on Kriya. A shocked Kriya grabs the bottle and starts hitting her cousin with it.

_Kahin jaise koi dhun baje_

_Raahon mein dekho hai manzil saje saare_

The girls start unlacing their roller blades.

_Hum hi hum jahan mein har jagah_

_Sapne Sajane ki humko mili vajeh_

They take off their gear, and place it on the counter with their blades.

_Kahin (kahin) jaise koi (koi) dhun baje (hoo..)_

_Raahon mein dekho hai manzil saje saare_

Taani puts her arm around her sister as they leave the rink.

_Hum hi (hum hi) hum jahan mein (harrr) jagah_

_Sapne Sajane ki humko mili vajeh_

Kriya gets on Taani's back, and Taani starts running.

_Yeh agar jo sach nahi_

_To sach bhala hai kya_

_Yaaron!_

Kriya sees a pani puri stall, and points it out to Taani, excited.

Taani runs faster.

_Apne hisab se_

_Dil ki kitab pe_

_Kuch to naya likho_

_Yaaron !_

_Anjano ki fikar_

_Na karti yeh umar_

_Phir kyun bhala daroo_

They reach the stall, and Kriya gets off Taani's back.

They have a pani puri eating contest to see who can eat the most pani puris the fastest.

_Hai junoon ooonnn_

_Hai junoon sa jeene mein_

_(Hai junoon sa jeene mein)_

_Hai junoon ooonnn_

_Hai junoon sa seene mein_

_Hai junoon ooonnn_

_Hai junoon ooonnn_

Kriya starts to pay for the pani puris, but Taani glares at her. "My treat, remember?" says Taani, as she pays for the panipuri.

They walk home, but on the way, Taani drags Kriya into a boutique.

They try on some dresses and shoes, trying to look as crazy as possible.

_Kabhi jo milenge raaste_

_Pal mein hi chamkegi hasi purani toh_

_Kaho kya kahoge phir hamey_

_Kaise chupaoge nami yeh palko ki_

They walk out of the store and head home.

When they walk in through the door, all the lights are off.

When they turn on the lights, they the living room covered with balloons, and a big banner that says, "SORRY!"

_Kabhi (kabhi) jo milenge (milenge) raaste_

_Pal mein hi chamkegi hasi purani toh_

_Kaho (kaho) kya kahoge (phirrr) hamey_

_Kaise chupaoge nami yeh palko ki_

_Yeh bata hai kya hua_

_Hua hai kyon bataaa…_

They see Swayam on the ground, holding his ears. He gets up as Taani and Kriya come near him and hugs them. "I'm sorry," he says, "I'm going to join Team Weaklings."

Kriya screams in Swayam's ear, causing both Swayam and Taani to jump. She jumps up and down, clapping her hands, while Taani whispers in Swayam's ear, "I knew you'd come around," causing him to smile.

_Yaroon !_

_Jee bhar ke jee le pal_

_Lagta hai aaj kal_

_Daur apna aayega_

Taani goes up to Kriya and drags her with her to get changed for the party.

_Yaaro jo khud pe ho yakeen_

_Toh zindagi haseen_

_Tujhe kal bulayega_

Taani throws around all her clothes, not being able to find anything, until Kriya finally finds her a dress.

_(Hai junoon ooonnn_

_Hai junoon sa jeene mein_

_(Hai junoon sa jeene mein)_

_Hai junoon ooonnn_

_Hai junoon sa seene mein ) - 2_

_Hai junoonn…_

They finally come out of their room, ready for the party, and say bye to Swayam.

They head outside to wait for Arjun.

Arjun comes with his jeep, and Kriya yells at him for being late. Arjun looks at Taani, and Taani gets her sister to calm down.

They drive to the party.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah, I do the odd song sequence every now and then, so if you're not a big fan of these, then you're in luck because they happen once in a blue moon. 
> 
> Musical Inspiration: Seamless by Sabrina Carpenter


	8. Fresher's Party

Two cars arrive at the same time. The first being Arjun's, containing Arjun, Kriya, and Taani, and the second being Rey's, containing Rey, Saara, Nisha, and Vrushika.

As soon as Saara gets out of Rey's car, she immediately goes and hugs Taani and Kriya. "You guys, this is so exciting!" The two sisters look at each other and give their friend a small smile. "Oh right, you guys hate parties."

"Of course. Only boring people like these Weaklings would hate parties," says Sharon, walking towards the girls.

"Sharon," warns Simmi, giving the girls a small smile.

"So, where are your dates?" asks Sharon.

"Oh shit! We totally forgot about the whole couple entry thing," mutters Kriya.

Sharon smirks, but before she can say anything, Vicky rushes towards her. "Sharon, we're short a couple people for the dance. We need more volunteers." Sharon bites her lip and calls the number she can't bring herself to delete.

"Hello, Aashi? Yeah, um, we kind of need more volunteers so, could you um, please bring the others here with you?"

"You're asking me for help?"

"Yes. But only because I'm desperate! So answer before my flash of temporary insanity dissipates.

"We'll be there. And I'm only doing this for all those poor freshers."

Sharon turns off her cellphone, muttering, "I can't believe I just did that." When she sees the shocked looks on everyone's faces, she angrily demands, "What?!" They all turn away and pretend to see nothing. Sharon rolls her eyes and turns to Kriya and Taani. "Your dates?"

As the two girls are about to approach Arjun, Nisha grabs his arm and says, "Sorry guys, but I need a date too, and this one here owes me a bunch of favors." Nisha starts dragging Arjun towards the party, but before entering, she asks Sharon, "Just to be clear, we just have to enter the party together right? Once we're in, I don't have to talk to him, and he doesn't have to talk to me?"

"I guess so."

"Eh, good enough. Wait, what am I saying? Hallelujah, let's go! Bye guys."

Everyone stares at Nisha's retreating figure in shock, not even acknowledging Arjun's cries for help. Then again, this could all just be typical average Nisha behavior.

"So girls, where are your dates?" asks Sharon, smirking. Taani and Kriya bite their lips and nervously look at each other. Noticing the look on her friends' faces, Saara whispered something in Rey's ear. Rey looks shocked, but Saara gave him a pleading look that he couldn't say no to.

Rey clears his throat and says, "Um, Sharon." Sharon turns and looks at her best-friend with a confused look on her face.

"What?"

"Um... I'm Kriya's date for tonight." Both Kriya and Sharon had their jaws on the floor. Kriya turns to look at Saara who gives her a 'just go along with it' kind of look.

Kriya sighs and grabs Rey's arm. She puts on a fake smile and says, "Yup! He's my date for tonight..." Rey looks at Kriya, then at Saara who gives him a death glare, and then back to Kriya.

He awkwardly smiles and says, "Uh, we're getting late. Let's go Kriya."

They walk away from the gang, who don't know what to make of this.

Once inside, Kriya immediately lets go of Rey's arm.

"Nice overacting Baatcutter."

"Excuse me? I was overacting? And how many times have I told you to not call me Baatcutter you -" says a furious Kriya who gets cut off by Rey saying, "Pretty boy flirt?"

Kriya pouts and mutters, "One day, I'll find a better nickname for you."

"How about handsome? Or Mr. Supercool? Or -" suggests Rey, but gets cut off by Kriya who smiles sweetly and says, "Goodbye, leave me alone."

As Kriya walks away, Rey shouts after her, "That's kind of long!"

Kriya turns around and glares at Rey. "Go to hell!"

She starts walking faster, but not fast enough to miss the last thing Rey says to her.

"But I don't know where you live."

As Kriya keeps walking on, trying to find Nisha, she grumbles, "I bet he's smirking right now. What I wouldn't give to wipe that smirk off his face. Bloody jerk!"

Back at the parking lot with the rest of them, Sharon comes out of her shocked state and turns to Taani. "Well, your sister found a date, surprisingly enough, but what about you?" Just as Taani's about to respond back, she hears the wheels of a car screeching. Out of the car come Aashi, Neha, Bharat and Swayam.

"Alright, we're here Siren. Now tell us what you need help with," says Aashi.

"First of all, don't call me Siren," says Sharon, who looks like she's about to pop a vessel, "and second of all, you and Neha are in charge of refreshments. And since I need Simmi here to help me greet people, Bharat can go and help Nil with the music." The three Weaklings look at each other and go inside the college.

"Now Freshling, about your date," says a mischievous Sharon.

Vrushika and Saara look at each other, and Vrushika says, "Di, I don't have a date either! What kind of a sister would focus on finding someone else a date rather than her little sister."

Then, in a fit of panic, Sharon blurts out, "Go with Swayam!"

"What?" both Vrushika and Swayam say in unison, eyes bulging out of their sockets.

"Yes! Swayam, you can be Vrushika's date. Now have fun kids," says Sharon, shooing them away.

As Swayam and Vrushika walk towards the party, Swayam clears his throat and says, "Um, so I don't think we've been properly introduced. I'm Swayam."

"Vrushika." The two awkwardly walk in silence, thinking,  _"This just might turn out to be the longest night of my life."_

Back with Sharon and the others, Sharon once again gives Taani a Cheshire Cat grin. "So, your date?"

"Damn, she's persistent," mutters Taani, as Saara chuckles.

Before Taani can make up some lame excuse for not having a date, she and Saara turn around to see a car which comes speeding in.

"You know, if some people don't know how to drive properly, then they really shouldn't be driving!" exclaims Taani.

"I want to talk to the idiot who might've given this moron his or her license," says Sharon, agreeing with Taani for the first time ever.

Saara, Simmi, and Vicky exchange shocked 'what alternate universe is this?' glances.

Two boys get out of the car. Both wearing jeans and white shirts. Except one looks exactly like Rey, build wise at least, while the other's wearing a big hat, huge sunglasses, and a ginormous scarf so you can't really see his face, as well as a black leather jacket.

The boys walk towards the gang, while Taani and Saara look shocked.  _"Could it really be him?"_ they think at the same time.

Sharon smiles at them. "Hi guys, I'm Sharon. What are your names?"

"Karan," says the boy who looked like Salman Khan on steroids, then points to the boy next to him, "and that's Aara - un. Aarun."

"Um, okay," says Sharon, then turns to Simmi. "Can you check if their names are on the list?" Simmi checks the list attached to her clipboard and nods her head. Sharon smiles. "Alright guys, you can go in. Wait, no! You need dates. Um... you two can go with the two lovely ladies standing next to you. Well, one lovely lady, and one not so lovely lady."

The four look at each other and decide to go along with it. Karan goes in with Saara, while Taani goes in with 'Aarun.'

As Karan and Saara are walking ahead of Taani and 'Aarun,' Saara demands, "Why are you here?"

"I didn't know you would be here," protests Karan, throwing his arms up in the air in surrender. "And if I did, I'd probably try and find a college that's far, far away from this place."

"I thought you were going to SPACE."

"Yeah, but I thought Taani would be there, and that would just make things awkward for everyone, so I decided to come here."

"Wait, what do you mean you didn't know I'd be here? is like the alma mater for the Rai Prakash family. And besides, of course Taani would study at the same college as her best-friends! Plus, her brother studies here, her maasi got a new job here, and this place is like Kriya's dream come true; her whole family moved here. But of course, how would you know that? You were too busy with your gaggle of admirers to listen to anything your girlfriend said to you at the time."

"See, this is exactly why I broke up with you You always thought that you meant nothing to me, when that wasn't the case, not at all. That's what caused all those stupid fights between us."

"Oh, so it's my fault now?"

Just as Karan's about to respond, Rey comes up to them and grabs Saara by the arm. "Saara, where have you been? That friend of yours is driving me nuts! Come on, let's go inside." With that, Rey drags Saara away from Karan, leaving him feeling confused, and slightly pissed off.

 _"Who is that guy?"_  he thinks to himself, as he enters the party.

While that was going on, Taani and 'Aarun' were having a little chat of their own.

"Your best friend's an idiot you know."

"Excuse me?"

"Seriously,  _Aarun_? I know it's you Aarav! Could Karan seriously not think of a better name? And he totally gave it away when he said Aarav at first, but quickly changed it to Aarun."

"I told him this was a bad idea," mutters 'Aarun,' now revealed to be Aarav.

"If you wanted to see me and everyone else so badly, you know can always just drop this whole 'me being near Taani leads to her ultimate doom' thing."

Aarav sighs. "That's not it. Karan wanted some company here, so he decided to sneak me in."

" _Sure_ ," says Taani, rolling her eyes, as if she actually believes him.

"Well on the bright side, now that you know, I can take this dang scarf off," says Aarav, as he takes the scarf off and throws it on the ground, along with the hat and sunglasses.

"That is a pretty ugly scarf. Karan's taste in fashion has really gotten bad after the break-up."

"Karan's taste in everything has gotten bad!" says Aarav, shuddering. "You will not believe some of the girls he dates! I think one of them was a clown."

"Where did he find a clown?" asks Taani, slightly worried about her friend's sanity.

"I don't know, some sketchy dating website? But honestly, I'm kind of terrified to find out." The two burst out laughing, and lock eyes with each other the minute they stop. They can see the pain in each other's eyes of being so far apart for so long.

But alas, some people just _love_ to interrupt eye-locks.

Swayam comes towards them and asks, "Princess, you coming?"

Taani turns around and says, "Yeah bhai." She gives Aarav one last look before entering the party.

* * *

"When is Sharon di going to come?" groans Arjun. "The party can't officially start until she makes an announcement."

"Seriously, everyone's here! Where the hell is she?" demands Kriya.

"I'm interested to see what music they'll have," says Taani.

"Ugh, it's some band," groans Saara. "I told Sharon that the guys are total brats, but she wouldn't listen."

"Oh great, more brats," moans Taani.

"You know, I can always throw those guys in a ditch and then have you sing," suggests Nisha. Everyone looks at her weirdly.

"She needs to lay off the Pretty Little Liars," says Vrushika, while the others nod in agreement.

"Oh look, here they come," says Kriya.

Three tall guys walk in, looks of disgust evident on their faces. One of them smirks and says, "So this is the famous College huh?"

"Yeah. I didn't know they had such low-class people here," says one of his bandmates. Rey gets ready to pummel each and every one of them. No one talks about his college and fellow students that way! But Saara holds him back.

To everyone's surprise, Taani says, "Funny. I didn't know that music had anything to do with class," loud enough for the boys to hear.

One of the guys walks towards her and says, "Were you talking to us, sweetheart?"

Taani smiles sweetly and says, "No, no I wasn't."

The guy smirks and mouths, "Thought so," as he turns around. But Taani doesn't stop there.

"That doesn't mean I wasn't talking  _about_  you," says Taani, coming in front of him. "And trust me, I'm anything  _but_  a sweetheart."

"Dang girl," mumbles Rey, as he sees Taani go against that guy.

Saara looks at Taani, and then at Kriya. They immediately know that they're thinking the same thing. "Okay, Taani has never been this quick to react," Kriya points out.

"I know right! Is she like, possessed or something?" asks Saara, absolutely serious.

"It's her inner Ruhi coming out," Aarav informs them, walking up behind them. "Taani might not like to admit it, but Ruhi's bitchitude actually rubbed off on her quite a bit." Kriya and Saara look confused, but turn back to their best friend.

One of the other guys in the band also comes to support his friend by saying, "Look, we're just expressing our opinions about your college."

"Yeah, well, your opinion is actually quite unnecessary."

The boy rolls his eyes. "You middle-class people and your -"

"If you dare finish that sentence, I highly recommend learning to sleep with your eyes open," says Kriya, stepping up beside her cousin.

"You know what, we don't need to take this crap from you guys!" says the guy, as he and friends stomp out of the room like a couple divas, just as Sharon comes in.

"Why is the band leaving?" Then she notices Kriya and Taani and says, "Of course! The 'I have an opinion about everything' sisters just had to pick a fight."

"Hey! We did not pick a fight," protests Kriya.

"Save it! Now that you made our live band leave, how's about you guys fix this, hm?"

Taani smirks. She takes off the black sash and net top of her dress, so she just has her turquoise strapless dress on, and hands them to Saara. She then holds her hand out to Aarav, and he immediately hands his black leather jacket over to her without her even having to ask for it.

She goes up on stage and says into the microphone, "Arjun, guitar. Nisha, base. Kriya, drums." Nisha, Arjun, and Kriya look at each other and shrug their shoulders. They then get up on stage.

As they get on stage, Nisha asks, "What song?"

"The new one."

Sharon's expecting Taani to start singing some boring, soft, romantic song. But when the music starts playing, her jaw drops.

***music***

Everyone starts cheering the minute the music starts.

_O malang hua dil ye mera_

_Hai mast malang hua dil ye mera_

_(x2)_

Arjun starts singing these lines, and half the female population swoons over his voice.

Nisha just rolls her eyes at this, as she continues her playing.

_Ishq fikar da chadde palla_

_Mauj karda ho ke jhalla jeeve_

_Ishq mein dil na hoyea fakeeri_

_Maange sab ki khair sukayya, jeeve_

Taani closes her eyes as she sings these lines.

She doesn't who these lines are being sung about, but she doesn't give a damn.

_Gira deeware_

_Laga lalkare_

_Ishq di masti de vich sone de jaage_

Taani opens her eyes and starts putting more movement in the song.

_Dhunki dhunki dhunki laage_

_Dhunki dhunki dhunki laage_

_Dhunki dhunki dhunki laage_

_Dhunki dhunki dhunki laage_

Taani starts tapping her feet along to the music, which seems difficult due to her heels, put she pulls it off with ease.

***music***

_O malang hua dil ye mera_

_Hai mast malang hua dil ye mera_

***music***

Taani gets the crowd riled up, and they start clapping along to the music.

_Ladla dil ko har bashar_

_Ishq da changa hai asaar_

_Karle kudh se hi pyaar bandeya_

_Hai jahan ki tujhko khabar_

_Kud se hai par tu bekhabar_

_Lela apni jee saare bandeya_

Taani starts swaying her hips along to the music, and makes her movements very dramatic.

_Gira deeware_

_Laga lalkare_

_Ishq di masti de vich sone de jaage_

She starts putting a little more edge into the song, and takes the mic off the stand.

_Dhunki dhunki dhunki laage (Ho dhunki laage ve)_

_Dhunki dhunki dhunki laage (Ho dhunki laage ve)_

_Dhunki dhunki dhunki laage_

_Dhunki dhunki dhunki laage_

She brings it over to Nisha, and together, their voices sound amazing.

***music***

Arjun goes all out with his epic guitar solo, and winks at all the girls who look like their about to faint because of him.

_Tu hawa paani aag hai_

_Tu daga daani daag hai_

_Jo bhi chave tu ban jaave re_

_Hai fana mera din khuda_

_Hai khuda jab mujhse juda_

_Khudko dhoonde toh isko pave re_

_Gira deeware_

_Laga lalkare_

_Ishq di masti de vich sone de jaage_

_Dhunki dhunki dhunki laage_

_Dhunki dhunki dhunki laage_

_Dhunki dhunki dhunki laage_

_Dhunki dhunki dhunki laage_

_Dhunki dhunki dhunki laage (Ho dhunki laage ve)_

Taani's voice makes a very big impact during those last lines.

Almost as if she's trying to prove something.

There's just this strange look in her eye…

_O malang hua dil ye mera_

_Hai mast malang hua dil ye mera_

_(x2)_

Taani runs her fingers through her hair and smiles as they finish the song. It's been so long since she's performed. There's just this glow on her face after performing that Aarav can't help but admire.

As Taani and the others get off stage, someone, most likely from their old school, calls out, "Encore! We want a duet!"

"Yeah, Taani and Aarav!" shouts another ex-Elite student.

Taani freezes on stage, as the others look worried. Aarav's eyes go wide as he hears this, and he tries to run away, but Karan's not gonna' let him leave that easily.

"Dude, let me go!" shouts Aarav.

"No way! You're getting on that stage and singing with Taani," says Karan, pushing his best-friend forward. And as fate would have it, Nil chose that exact moment to put the spotlight on him. Aarav gets on stage next to Taani.

He clears his throat and whispers, "So, what are we singing?"

Taani snaps out of her thoughts. "The first song we ever sang together."

Aarav's eyes go wide for the second time today.

"Are you -" he begins, but Taani cuts him off by saying "Yes."

Taani signals Kriya, Arjun, and Nisha to get into their positions, except Nisha was now on the keyboard, as Aarav sighs and goes along with it all.

 **Aarav:**   _We're soarin', flyin'_

_There's not a star in heaven_

_That we can't reach_

Aarav looks intensely at Taani while singing these lines.

**Taani:** _If we're tryin'_

_So we're breaking free_

Taani slowly looks into his eyes.

 **Aarav:**   _You know the world can see us_

_In a way that's different than who we are_

Aarav thinks about how he and Taani were put in boxes.

How it was hard for them to be themselves.

**Taani:** _Creating space between us_

_Till we're separate hearts_

Taani thinks back to when both her dad and Ruhi tried to keep her away from Aarav.

**Together:** _But your faith it gives me strength_

_Strength to believe_

Then they both think back to when they realized that their friendship really meant something.

It was no ordinary friendship.

 **Aarav:**   _We're breakin' free!_

Aarav looks away from Taani.

 **Taani:**   _We're soarin'_

 **Aarav:**   _Flyin'_

 **Together:**   _There's not a star in heaven that we can't reach_

**Aarav:** _If we're tryin'_

**Together:**   _Yeah we're breaking free_

**Aarav:** _Oh We're breakin' free_

**Taani:**   _Ooo_

They dance along to the song as they sing, happiness evident on their faces as they remember how good it felt to finally be who they want to be.

 **Aarav:**   _Can you feel it building_

_Like a wave the ocean just can't control_

Spotlight on Aarav.

 **Taani:**   _Connected by a feeling_

_Ooo, in our very souls_

Spotlight on Taani.

 **Aarav:**   _Very soul, ohh_

 **Together:**   _Rising till it lifts us up_

_So everyone can see_

They walk around each other while singing these lines.

 **Aarav:**   _We're breakin' free!_

Aarav pulls Taani close to him so that they're facing each other.

**Taani:** _We're soarin'_

**Aarav:** _Flyin'_

**Together:**   _There's not a star in heaven that we can't reach_

 **Aarav:**   _If we're tryin'_

**Together:** _Yeah we're breaking free_

**Aarav:**   _Oh breaking free_

**Taani:** _Ooo_

**Taani:** _Runnin'_

**Aarav:**   _Climbin'_

_To get to that place to_

**Together:**   _Be all that we can be_

 **Aarav:**   _Now's the time_

**Together:** _So we're breaking free_

**Aarav:**   _We're breaking free_

 **Taani:**   _Ooo, yeah_

This time while singing together, they don't break eye-contact.

They're voices and movements aren't the only things in sync. So are their eyes.

 **Aarav:**   _More than hope, more than faith_

Aarav walks over to Arjun and sings next to him.

**Taani:** _This is true, this is fate_

Taani walks over to Nisha and sings next to her.

_And together we_

**Together:** _See it comin'_

They walk back their original spots.

**Aarav:** _More than you, more than me_

**Taani:**   _Not a want, but a need_

 **Together:**   _Both of us breakin' free_

Their eyes connect once again as they come together and sing.

**Taani:** _Soarin'_

Aarav spins Taani around and dips her.

 **Aarav:**   _Flyin'_

He brings her back up.

 **Together:**   _There's not a star in heaven that we can't reach_

_If we're tryin'_

**Aarav:**   _Yeah we're breaking free_

 **Taani:**   _Breaking free_

As they sing the finale, everyone starts dancing along to the song.

Even Sharon's tapping her foot along to beat.

 **Taani:**   _We're runnin'_

 **Aarav:**   _Ooo, climbin'_

**Together:** _To get to the place to be all that we can be_

Vrushika was dancing along to the song, when she bumped into Swayam.

Their eyes locked for a second, but they quickly broke out of it, as if nothing had happened.

**Taani:** _Now's the time_

**Aarav:**   _Now's the time_

 **Taani:**   _So we're breaking free_

 **Aarav:**   _Oh, we're breaking free_

 **Taani:**   _Oh oh_

Saara's dancing along to the song with Rey, as Karan looks at them with jealousy clearly evident in his eyes.

 **Together:**   _You know the world can see us_

_In a way that's different than who we are_

Taani and Aarav lock their eyes one last time, before the crowd's cheering brought them out of it.

They all walked off stage, and Sharon finally came on to make her announcement. Saara hugs her best-friends and says, "That was great you guys!"

"Oh please!" says Kriya. "We all know the real star's here."

"Aw, di! That's not true. No one can play the drums like you can. Well, other than Karan, but no one really cares about him."

"Thanks Princess."

"Uh, guys, I hate to break it to you but, the other star of the night is trying to pull another one of his Houdini acts," says Nisha, pointing to Aarav who's trying to sneak out of the party.

"Oh no he doesn't!" exclaims Taani, running after him. Kriya's about to follow her, when Saara puts her hand on her shoulder and shakes her head.

But someone else does decide to follow Taani. And it's Rey. He's curious about Taani and Aarav's relationship. He feels like there's something between them, yet there's also nothing.

As Rey follows Taani, Sharon says into the microphone, "Okay, so first off, we're going to have a performance from Team Dazzlers!"

"Of course," says Kriya, loud enough for Sharon to hear. Sharon looks like she's about to pop another vessel.

"You got a problem with that Miss Kripa?" she demands, getting off stage, coming face to face with Kriya.

"It's Kriya."

"I don't care. And since you have such a problem with us dancing, why don't you get up there and dance?"

Kriya raises her eyebrows, knowing that would piss Sharon off. "Really? Is that a challenge?"

Sharon gives her a big fake smile. "I'm just asking you to dance."

Kriya puts on a similar plastic smile. "You know what would be really fun,  _Siren_? If you could join me."

Sharon looks ready bury Kriya's body. "Fine! But how about we make things interesting? Me and you, here, instead of onstage?"

"You're on."

Everybody moves out of the way as Kriya and Sharon shout, "Music!"

Right when Sharon and Kriya finish the dance, Rey enters and asks "What did I miss?" Everyone turns to face him.

Saara goes up to him exclaims, "Just about the greatest face-off ever!"

"Um, bhai, where's Taani?" asks Nisha.

"Oh, she said she wasn't feeling well so she just went home," responds Rey, as he thinks back to when he followed Taani.

While the face-off was going on, Taani was running after Aarav, throwing his leather jacket at him while yelling, "Aarav, Aarav stop! Slow down, you moron! You know I can't run in heels!" When Taani realizes that Aarav is too far out of reach, she takes off her heels and throws them in his direction, hoping that one of them knocked him out. She leaned back against the wall and slid down. She buried her head in her hands and started to cry.

Rey, who saw the whole thing, goes over to where Taani threw her heels and picks them up. He kneels in front of her and says, "Yours I presume?" Taani looks up and sees Rey's smiling face holding up her heels. She started to feel a little embarrassed, wiping away her tears. She puts on a fake smile and takes the heels.

"Thank you," she says softly.

"No problem," says Rey, moving to sit beside Taani. "So, I take it that you don't throw shoes as dangerous as these at someone for no apparent reason."

"Most of the time," says Taani, giving a small, but real smile.

"So, what's the story?"

Taani sighs. "Boy and girl have never acknowledged each other before, but somehow, they randomly end up talking. Well, not randomly because they were forced to share a locker, but that's not the point. Um, let's see... oh, and they immediately hated each other! But then they realized that they have things in common, and they eventually became good friends. Really good friends. But on graduation day, boy tells girl that he's leaving forever and that it's for the best. That it's for her own good."

"Look Taani, I'm not going to ask you for details, but it seems like you really care about Aarav. And from what I've seen, you're not a quitter. Try talking to him again. A hundred times if you have to! If you guys are meant to be together, then he'll come around."

"Wow, that's really deep. But we're just friends."

"That's what they all say," Rey says teasingly.

Taani glares at him, and then asks, "How did your friend like the chocolate?"

"Sharon loved it! I can't thank you enough for that chocolate bar."

"Wait, Sharon's the one you gave the chocolate bar to? You mean I wasted my favorite chocolate bar on  _her_?"

Rey gulps. "Uh, how about we go back to the party?"  _More witnesses there in case you murder me,_  he silently adds... in his head of course.

"I'm really not in a party mood right now. Please let my sister know that I'm leaving." Rey nods his head at her, and Taani leaves.

Rey smiles at the memory, but snaps out of it when he sees his sister and Simmi get on stage. "Whoa! Give it up for Kriya Shekawat and Sharon Rai Prakash!" says an enthusiastic Simmi.

"And after such an exciting evening, how about something chill for the rest of the evening?" says Aashi.

"Please enjoy these next few romantic songs," continues Simmi.

"Have fun guys!" concludes Aashi.

As Bharat and Nil try to find a good song to play, Sharon demands, "What was that?"

"Sharon, these are freshers. It's their night. They don't need to see performance after performance!" explains Simmi.

Sharon nods. "Well, I'm going to be leaving right now. Can you guys handle the rest?"

Simmi smiles. "Of course."

_Hmm hmm_

_Hmm hmm_

_Hmm hmm_

_Hmm hmm hmm_

_(x2)_

Everybody starts to pair off for the dance.

Neha and Vicky silently go into a corner where they think no one can see them.

Simmi grabs Nil by the arm before he can go anywhere else.

Bharat brings his hand out for Aashi, and she accepts it.

To escape all the other girls, Rey quickly grabs Kriya's hand and puts his hand on her waist.

As Saara's about to go dance with Rey, Karan roughly grabs her by the hand, and puts his hand on her waist.

As some guys are about to ask Nisha for a dance, Arjun quickly steps in between.

Vrushika and Swayam stay by the walls, stealing glances at each other.

_Dehleez pe mere dil ki_

_Jo rakhe hain tune kadam_

_Tere naam pe meri zindagi_

_Likh di mere humdum_

As they sway to the music, Neha asks Vicky, "Are you sure that no one can see us?"

"I'm sure," says Vicky, as he twirls her around.

_Haan seekha maine jeena jeena kaise jeena_

_Haan seekha maine jeena mere humdum_

_Na seekha kabhi jeena jeena kaise jeena_

_Na seekha jeena tere bina humdum_

"What was that?" asks Nil, as he and Simmi start to dance.

"Uh, nothing! I just needed a partner," stutters Simmi.

Nil raises his eyebrows at her.

***music***

Vicky and Neha get lost in each other's eyes as they dance.

Nil keeps looking around at all the other girls, as Simmi looks down.

_Dehleez pe merey dil ki_

_Jo rakhe hain tune kadam_

_Tere naam pe meri zindagi_

_Likh di mere humdum_

Bharat twirls Aashi around and she laughs.

"It's about time I heard you laugh," says Bharat. "You've been sad all day."

"You noticed?"

"Of course."

_Haan sikha maine jeena jeena kaise jeena_

_Haan sikha maine jeena, mere humdum_

_Na sikha kabhi jeena jeena kaise jeena_

_Na sikha jeena tere bina humdum_

"Why are you dancing with me?" asks Kriya.

"Because you're the only girl here, other than my sisters and friends, who isn't thinking about tearing my shirt off."

"I highly doubt girls like you that much."

Rey raises his eyebrows. "Jealous?"

***music***

Bharat and Aashi laugh while they dance, as Rey and Kriya continue to argue about whether or not Kriya's jealous.

_Hmm hmm_

_Hmm hmm_

_Hmm hmm_

_Hmm hmm hmm_

Vrushika and Swayam bump into each other as they go to the punch table.

They stare at each other for a while, but snap out of it.

_Sachi si hain yeh taareefein_

_Dil se jo maine kari hain_

Vrushika starts to walk away but Swayam grabs her hand.

***music***

Vrushika turns around and looks at him, confused.

_Sachi si hain yeh taareefein_

_Dil se jo maine kari hain_

Swayam brings Vrushika towards him and says, "Hi."

_Jo tu mila to saji hain_

_Duniya meri humdum_

Vrushika smiles for the first that night, and says, "Hi."

_O aasma mila zameen ko meri_

_Aadhe aadhe poore hain hum_

_Tere naam pe meri zindagi_

_Likh di mere humdum_

"What's your problem?" asks Saara.

"What's my problem, what's your problem?" demands Karan. "You say that you're hurt about our breakup, but here you're flirting with Rey?"

"Flirting?! We're just friends!"

_Haan seekha maine jeena jeena, kaise jeena_

_Haan seekha maine jeena, mere humdum_

_Na seekha kabhi jeena jeena kaise jeena_

_Na seekha jeena tere bina humdum_

"You know, I don't need a bodyguard," says Nisha. "I'm not some damsel in distress!"

"Yeah, I totally saw that back there," says Arjun sarcastically, tightening his grip on her wrist.

"Ouch," says Nisha, freeing her hand from his grip.

Arjun looks at her wrist and sees some red marks. Before he can question her, Nisha's already running away from the party. He sighs and follows her.

_Hmm hmm_

_Hmm hmm_

_Hmm hmm_

_Hmm hmm hmm_

_(x2)_

Love is in the air!

Whether it's secretive, or one-sided.

Carefree, or in the form of arguments.

Shy and new.

Old and aggressive.

Or something as simple as concern.

Love is definitely in the air!

And that my friends, was 's Freshers' Party!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've introduced two more OCs in here, who are to play a big part in this story, and you may or may not have noticed their names earlier. Yes, I'm talking about Karan and Aarav. And in case anyone wanted to know, the first song that Taani sang was Dhunki from the movie Mere Brother Ki Dulhan. The second one was Troy and Gabriella's duet from the first HSM movie, Breaking Free. Kriya and Sharon's dance was literally The Dance of Envy from Dil Toh Pagal Hai, with Sharon as Karishma Kapoor and Kriya as Madhuri Dixit. Finally, the song all the couples danced to was Jeena Jeena from Badlapur.
> 
> Musical Inspiration: Run This Town by Lucy Hale


	9. The Aftermath of the Fresher's Party

Smriti opens the door, only to find her niece with tears running down her cheeks. "Oh, sweetie!" she exclaims, enveloping her in a hug and closing the door. "What happened?"

"Aarav happened," says Taani, crying even harder.

"Okay, honey. Get into your PJs, and we'll watch DDLJ okay?" says Smriti, as Taani pulls away from the hug, and goes into her room.

An hour or so later, Swayam and Kriya enter the house, and see their mother and cousin singing and dancing along to 'Tujhe Dekha Toh Yeh Jaana Sanam.'

"What the hell?" they say in unison.

Taani and Smriti turn to look at them and say, "What, it's DDLJ." Swayam and Kriya roll their eyes and head to respective their rooms.

* * *

Sharon is watching a horror movie in her room with the lights off, for some insane reason, and she's wrapped up in her blanket, hugging her pillow since she's at a really scary part, when…

Her phone rings!

She jumps up, her popcorn and remote flying in the air. She answers her phone and snaps, " _What_?"

"Um, hello Sharon. Did I disturb you?" asks a masculine voice.

Sharon bites her tongue. "RDX sir?"

"Yes."

"Oh! Um, why did you call?" asks Sharon, now feeling very awkward as she had just snapped at the assistant vice principal.

"I just wanted to let you know that Shivam will be joining St. Louis again."

Sharon's eyes are as wide as saucers, her jaw to the floor. "What?!"

"Sharon, it's been proven that Shivam was not guilty of anything. And besides, everyone knew he was innocent. Anyways, I'll make the official announcement in a few days. Good night."

"Good night sir," says Sharon as she turns off her phone.

Sharon grabs a pillow and throws it across the room. "Shit! How am I going to face Shivam?"

Her train of thought breaks when she hears Vrushika say, "Di, we're home!" Sharon turns and sees her two cousins walking in.

"Where's Arjun?" she asks.

"Oh, he said he had to go talk to Nisha," replies Saara.

"Should I call the police?" asks Sharon, 103% serious.

"No, di!" chuckles Saara. "No matter how much they may fight, Arjun worries the most about Nisha."

* * *

Arjun kicks the door of the Singhania's house for what seems like the hundredth time. "Nisha, open the door!" he yells. He's about to kick again when Nisha finally opens the door.

" _What_?"

A now frustrated Arjun barges in through the door, as Nisha closes it.

"You know exactly why I'm here, so just stop pretending."

"What are you talking about?" she asks, pretending not to know anything.

"Nisha, just cut the crap and tell me why you're doing this to yourself," he warns, grabbing her wrist.

Nisha pulls her wrist out of Arjun's grip and demands, "Why do care so much? Because I'm your sister's friend? Or is it because I'm Rey's sister? Ooo, or is it because you just pity me? Well, newsflash Mr. Arjun Rai Prakash! I don't need your pity or your sympathy! In fact, I don't need anyone! I can take care of myself! And you -" But Nisha doesn't finish her sentence due to Arjun's lips crashing down on her own.

Arjun just wanted to shut her up. He did not intend for this to become a long, passionate kiss. Which it was becoming. And Nisha certainly did not intend to respond back to him. But she did.

When they break away from the kiss, Nisha and Arjun immediately shout at once, "That was not a kiss!"

"I was just trying to get you to shut up."

"I know!"

They awkwardly stand in silence for a few minutes, until Arjun clears his throat and says, "So, you want to tell me why you've suddenly become suicidal?"

Nisha sighs. "Look Arjun, I'll admit that I'm dealing with some stuff right now, and when I'm ready, I'll tell you everything."

" _When_ Nisha?" he demands, coming dangerously close to her. "When you're in the hospital dying because you refused to share your feelings?"

Now, Nisha's seen her fair share of anger, but for some reason, Arjun's anger made her nervous.

And she does not like it one bit.

"Nothing is going to happen to me Arjun! I'll be fine. And please, don't tell anyone about this right now."

As Arjun is about to protest, he sees that rare pleading, vulnerable look in Nisha's eyes and grudgingly says, "Fine, I won't tell."

"Thank you." Nisha smiles at him, and then proceeds to push him out of the house. "Now get out!"

"Rude."

Nisha rolls her eyes. "You are such a drama queen." And with that, they get into another argument.

Meanwhile, Rey's on his way home, when he stops at a red light. While he's waiting, he hears his phone beep. He checks his phone, and sees that it's a text from Sharon.

"Hey! So, Arjun's over at your place. Nisha's the only one there. Just thought you should know."

Rey's eyes go wide at the text he reads. He speeds past the red light, thank god there are no other cars around, and races to get home.

Rey opens the door to the house, and while panting, asks,"Okay, who killed who?"

Nisha and Arjun roll their eyes and say, "We're fine."

Rey exhales in relief. "Thank god!"

Then he looks at the clock and asks, "Arjun, what exactly are you doing here so late?" Rey crosses his arms over his chest and glares at Arjun. Arjun awkwardly smiles and looks at Nisha.

Nisha nervously turns to her brother and explains, "He came here to, uh, return my phone!"

"Yeah... I'm going to go home now!" Arjun runs out of the house, causing Rey to chuckle.

He turns back to Nisha and sees her glaring at him. She goes up to him and grabs the collar of his shirt. "Never go all protective brother on me again. Ever!" She walks to her room and slams the door.

Rey blinks his eyes and says, "That girl will be the death of me."

* * *

Almost everyone had gone home at this point, except for Simmi, Aashi, Nilesh, Bharat and a few other people who had decided to stay back and help clean up.

"So, who needs a ride home?" asks Aashi.

"I do," Simmi pipes up. "Sharon kind of left."

"Come on Sims, I'll give you a ride."

"Okay. Who else is carpooling with us?"

"Um, Bharat and Nilesh."

"Wait, where are Neha and Vicky?"

"Vicks took her home. I swear, those two can't keep a secret to save their lives."

"I know what you mean. They think that no one knows, but in reality, everyone knows!" The two girls laugh as they head off to Aashi's car.

After they drop off Nil and Bharat, Aashi stops the car at Simmi's place. "Thanks for the ride Ash," says Simmi, unbuckling her seatbelt.

"Oh no you don't!" says Aashi, grabbing her wrist and making her sit down.

"What the hell?"

"Sims, I'm not letting you leave until you tell me what's going on between you and Nil."

"Ah crud! You noticed?"

"Um, yeah," says Aashi, as if it's the most obvious thing ever.

Simmi sighs. "I don't know, Ash. I mean, I guess I've sort of started liking him as more than a friend, and I get insanely jealous when I see him with other girls. But I really don't want to ruin our friendship. I mean, there's absolutely no way that Nil could like me like that."

"You don't know that for sure Sims."

"Whatever," she says, getting out of the car. "Bye Ash."

As Aashi watches her best-friend go, she says, "Trust me Simmi. One day, Nil will realize what an amazing girl you are."

* * *

Meanwhile, a certain Vrushika Rai Prakash was smiling as she thought about tonight. "He's sweet," she says to herself, remembering her dance with Swayam. She looks at her phone and asks herself, "Should I call him?" He gave her his number for a reason, of course.

Swayam is going through the same thoughts as Vrushika, as he keeps thinking about her as well. "She's different," he says to himself, remembering how shy Vrushika had been. "She's not as outgoing as Arjun. She shies away from the spotlight, unlike Sharon. And she definitely doesn't seem to have anger issues like Saara."

"It's kind of late though," says Vrushika, biting her lip. "Maybe I should text him instead."

"Well I have her number," mumbles Swayam. "Maybe I could text her."

Vrushika: Hi

Swayam: Hey

 _Shit, what do I say next?_  they both think simultaneously.

Vrushika: So, what's up?

 _What's up? Wow Vrushika, wow! How lame can you be?_  she thinks.

Swayam: Oh, nothing much. My mom and Taani are freaking me out with their singing and dancing to Kuch Kuch Hota Hai. As if DDLJ wasn't bad enough!

 _Oh thank the lord she asked me that!_  he thinks.

Vrushika: Omigosh, no way! I love Kuch Kuch Hota Hai!

Swayam: No, why?!

Vrushika: How could you not like it?! Those little kids are adorable, and it's SRK and Kajol! Oh, and Salman Khan's doing push-ups.

Swayam: Of course.

Vrushika: Hey! What's that supposed to mean?

Swayam: Nothing, nothing. So, how do you like so far?

Vrushika: Well, considering the fact that I've only been there for a day…

 _Ugh, I'm such an idiot!_  thinks Swayam.

Vrushika: It's not so bad. Minus some bitchy seniors, and perverted morons.

Swayam: Wait, perverted morons? Anyone in particular?

Vrushika: NO! No, nothing like that.

As Swayam was chatting with Vrushika, Kriya was peacefully reading a book in her. Well, until Taani came in that is. "Hi di!" she says, back to her usual perky, bubbly self. Kriya chuckles as she closes her book.

"Hey Princess. How was the movie session?"

"Amazing!" Taani exclaims, flopping onto her bed. Then Taani notices a look on her sister's face. "Di, I don't want to talk about Aarav right now," she protests, grabbing her favorite black pillow and hugging it to her chest. Kriya grabs her own favorite pillow with a dog on it, and her stuffed dog, and goes over to Taani's bed.

"Okay, how about this?" asks Kriya, making her cousin sit up, and then handing Taani teddy bear. "You're going to tell me exactly how you feel about Aarav right now. When you're mad, you can punch your favorite pillow, and when you're sad, you can hug your teddy bear."

"No," says Taani, lying back down. Kriya sighs and makes her sit up again.

"How about I do the same thing with Rey?"

"Oh, this should be interesting. You're going first."

"Fine. Well, when I first met him, that  _jerk_ bumped into me, and didn't even say sorry!"

Taani feels really bad for the beat down Kriya's pillow's about to get.

"And then when I asked him to apologize, he didn't even apologize to me!" yells Kriya, digging her nails into her pillow. "And then do you want to know what he called me?" she demands, punching her pillow. "He called me  _baatcutter_! Can you imagine? The nerve!"

"Easy on the pillow di."

"Oh, sorry. And then he bumped into me again, and didn't even apologize. Again!"

"Okay di," says Taani, taking the pillow from her. "I understand that he's rude, but he can also be very nice. He was your date to the party."

"Yeah," sighs Kriya, hugging her toy dog.

"And he was probably just in a hurry. I mean, he had to save the world from Sharon's anger."

"I guess," mumbles Kriya, hugging the dog even tighter. "Okay, your turn."

Taani groans. "Well, right now, I wish that this pillow was Aarav's face," she says, punching her favorite pillow.

 _Poor pillow_ , thinks Kriya.

Then she hugs her teddy bear and says, "But I also wish he was this teddy bear. I miss him so much!"

"Oh, honey," says Kriya, enveloping her sister into a hug.

"But I hate him!" yells Taani, punching the pillow again, causing Kriya to jump back. "He's an idiot! He just always has to think he's right. He thinks him being away from me is going to be good for me? Well, then after four years of friendship, he still doesn't know me." She then grabs her teddy bear again, and says, "He doesn't understand that I need him. We're best friends. I can't stand being away from him di. He just doesn't get it."

Kriya rubs her cousin's back as she says, "Sweetie, boys are idiots. They just don't understand girls. Now come on, it's getting late. Let's get to bed." Taani nods her head as Kriya gets her things, and walks back to her bed. She looks back at Taani and whispers, "I need to talk to Aarav."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Musical Inspiration: Sunny Day by Joy Williams


	10. More Than Just A Nickname

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some very minor characters are introduced in here, they are not OCs, and they will be popping up every now and then. Happy reading!

The next day, both dance teams were freaking out!

"Shit, shit, shit!" yells Sharon, frantically pacing around the rehearsal hall. "We still don't have a sixth dancer!"

"It's okay Sharon, don't worry," consoles Simmi.

"Yeah Shar," says Rey. "We'll find a dancer."

"They're right di," says Vrushika. "You need to calm down."

"Calm down?! CALM DOWN? How can expect me to calm down Vrushi? Footloose -" Sharon stops talking when something hits her.

"Vrushi!" she exclaims, hugging her cousin and twirling her around. Everyone else shared similar 'has the pressure finally gotten to her?' looks. Sharon puts Vrushika down and says, "You can be our sixth dancer! You're amazing!"

"What?! Di, did you forget that I have horrible stage fright?"

"Oh yeah..." says Sharon, her eyes falling onto Arjun. "Hey, so you're a good dancer -"

"Forget it di," Arjun is quick to say. "You know that there is no way that I can match up to your level of dancing. And besides, you need a female dancer, not a male one."

Sharon sighs and turns to Nisha, who doesn't even let her speak. "What he said."

Sharon looked like she was about to burst! Which either means she'll kill someone, or she'll start to cry - there was really no telling with her.

"Sharon," says Vicky, finally speaking up, "why don't you just ask Saara to join the team?"

"Vicky, you're a genius!" exclaims Sharon, giving him a hug.

"Really?"

"No!" Sharon runs out of the rehearsal hall to find her cousin.

Meanwhile, in the canteen, Team Weaklings wasn't having much luck either.

"Bhai, what are we going to do?" moans Kriya. "We still haven't found a sixth dancer!"

"Alright alright," says Swayam, trying to calm her nerves. "Who do we know that's an extremely good dancer, and is also male?"

"That's just it! We don't anyone like that."

"Well, maybe the others are having better luck."

"This college is full of great dancers!" exclaims Aashi, as she, Bharat and Neha are walking around the basketball court. "Why is it so hard to find one good male dancer for our team?" She leans on Bharat's shoulder, as he rubs her back.

"You guys are disgusting and insensitive," complains Neha.

"Aw, sorry chutki," Bharat says sympathetically, knowing that she was irritated that she and Vicky couldn't have what they had - a public relationship, where they could be openly affectionate with one another without having to worry about Sharon mutilating them.

Suddenly, the trio hears music blaring from some loudspeakers on the court. They see a familiar looking guy dancing on the court.

Once he's done, they walk up to him, Aashi being the first to exclaim, "Wow, that awesome!"

"Thanks," says the guy. "I'm Karan, by the way."

"Aashi. And these are my friends, Neha and Bharat."

"We were wondering if you'd join our dance team for Footloose," explains Bharat.

Karan shrugs. "Sure, why not."

"Okay then!" says Neha. "Meet us by RDX Sir's office tomorrow morning."

"Okay. See you guys then."

As they leave, the trio hi-5 and smile at their success.

* * *

As Swayam leaves his sisters, walking out of the canteen, Taani continues consoling Kriya. "Di, it's fine. We'll figure something out."

Kriya sighs. "I don't know Taani. I'm having huge doubts about this whole creating a team thing. Everyone thinks I have all the answers, but I really don't."

As Taani's about to say something, she freezes. "Oh my god," she says, hiding her face.

"What?" asks Kriya, looking where Taani is. Her eyes go wide at what she sees, and she hides her face as well. "What are they doing here?"

"How should I know?"

"Hi Taani," says a boy, coming near their table.

"Hi Kriya," says his twin brother.

Taani and Kriya face the boys and awkwardly smile. "Vishesh," says Taani, gritting her teeth.

"Abhishek," mutters Kriya.

"So, what are the odds we'd find you two lovely ladies here?" asks Abhishek, as he and Vishesh sit down at their table.

"What are the odds?" says Kriya, awkwardly smiling.

"So, are you two busy tonight?" asks Vishesh.

"Yes!" shouts Taani. "We're very busy! Right di?"

"Yeah, you know us! Busy,  _busy_ bees."

"Come on Kri, you can't be  _that_ busy," says Abhishek.

"Yeah Tans," says Vishesh. "Do you guys honestly not have any spare time for your old friends?"

Taani and Kriya start to panic as to what to say, when they hear a voice say, "Yo, dumb and dumber. Learn to take a hint. They're not interested." Taani and Kriya turn to see Nisha, aka, their savior.

"Well that's rude," says Abhishek, pouting like a little kid.

Nisha rolls her eyes and grabs both boys by their collars. "Listen to me, and listen well morons. Don't ever try to bother them again, and don't call them Tans and Kri. Only I can call them that." She lets go of their collars, and shouts, "Now scram!" The two boys run away crying, as Nisha sits down at Taani and Kriya's table.

"Nish, that was epic!" exclaims Kriya, giving her a hug.

"Did you see their faces?" asks Taani, laughing.

"I know right!" says Kriya.

"They were bothering you guys, and like I said to them. Only I can call you guys Tans and Kri. They're more than just nicknames. It's how we became friends."

***Flashback***

_Taani and Kriya at the age of nine, just minding their own business when the school bully comes up to them._

_"Hello Taani and Kriya," sneers Ruhi._

_"What do you want Ruhi?" snaps Kriya, who has had enough of this girl's bullying and taunting._

_Ruhi smirks. "Nothing much really. I'm just wondering how uncool people like you got into this school."_

_"We got in based on our brains and talent Ruhi, not our temperature," says Taani, not even looking up from her drawing of a really scary unicorn._

_Ruhi pouts, upset by how unfazed the two girls seemed. "Of course you dorks wouldn't even know the meaning of cool! Kriya can't even act like a proper girl, and little Miss Taani over there doesn't know the meaning of reality." Both cousins glare at her, but are surprised when a girl steps in front of them._

_"They're not cool, they're awesome, amazing, sweet, smart, and talented," says the girl. Kriya and Taani recognized her as the new girl, Nisha. She didn't really talk to anyone other than Saara. "Kriya's an awesome dancer, and she scares all the boys, and Taani's not only a better violinist than you, she can also sing! And have you seen her drawing of this epic unicorn who looks like Satan?"_

_Ruhi seems irritated by Nisha's interference, but continues smirking. "But you can't make cool nicknames with their boring names."_

_"Sure I can. Taani becomes Tans, and Kriya becomes Kri." Ruhi screams in frustration and stomps away._

_Nisha then turns to Taani and Kriya and says, "Hi, I'm Nisha."_

_"I'm Taani and this is my cousin Kriya. Thanks for helping us."_

_"Yeah, Ruhi's a nightmare."_

_"So I've heard," says Nisha, sitting down._

***End of Flashback***

"Even back then Ruhi was a bitch," says Nisha.

"Yeah, how were you even friends with her Taanu?" asks Kriya. Taani's smile fades away, as she excuses herself and walks away.

"Shit, not again," groans Kriya.

"Do have this thing where every time you open your mouth, your foot just automatically enters it?"

Kriya throws a napkin at Nisha while grumbling, "Shut up."

Taani runs into the fire escape, slamming the doors shut behind her. She sits on the steps, running her fingers through her hair as thinks about what her sister said.

"How could I have ever been friends with Ruhi?" She thinks back to all the times Ruhi has been awful to her and her friends. But then she remembers a different side to Ruhi. Her nicer, not as crazy side.

They'd had some good times during the five or so years that they were friends. From band rehearsal to water fights... to making butterscotch brownies and going gaga over boys. They were inseparable, practically sisters.

Until she turned into a possessive maniac out to get all friends. Taani hates Ruhi for all that she tried to do, but most of all, she hates her for not trusting their friendship. Deep down, she was slightly sympathetic. Taani was the first person to ever care about Ruhi, and Ruhi was scared to lose her. But Taani would never forgive her.

As Taani comes out of her thoughts, she says, "Maybe coming up with a new song will help me calm down." She gets out her phone and starts to think of lyrics.

Meanwhile, Kriya, Saara, and Nisha look back and forth as Vicky, Nilesh and Bharat pace around a, thankfully empty, hallway. Kriya starts to get irritated and shouts, "Oh for the love of - sit still!" They look at Kriya, and quietly sit down on the bench like scared little kids. Saara and Nisha grab her by the shoulders, and step in front of her, since she looks ready to kill.

"Tell us what's going on you guys," suggests Nisha.

"Vicky, you go first," says Saara.

"Okay, so I was in the canteen, when this guy, Rahul something-or-another, came and started to flirt with Neha! So I may or may not have said something to insult both Neha and Rahul."

The sound of Kriya slapping her forehead can be heard from behind Saara and Nisha.

"Please tell me your story isn't similar to  _that_  moron's," Nisha pleads to Bharat.

"Well... you see, guys were going up to her and complimenting her all day, and I haven't even gotten a chance to really spend much time with her with all the Footloose stuff we had to do today... therefore, I got pissed, and gave her the cold shoulder. Then  _she_  got pissed and yelled at me."

Nisha bangs her head on Kriya's shoulder.

Saara looks at Nil and says, "Well, at least you don't have a girlfriend. Hit me."

"So you see, I was completely ignoring Simmi, and flirting with this girl I really like, and then when I went to tell Simmi about it, she completely ignored me."

Saara goes up to Nil, and slaps the back of his head, so hard that it causes him to fall on the ground. "You idiot!"

As Nisha struggles to keep both Saara and Kriya from destroying the boys, she yells, "Find Taani! She specializes in helping lost causes like you utter morons."

The boys quickly run away to find Taani.

As Taani struggles to find a tune to go along with her lyrics, she hears the door of the Fire Escape open. She stands up and turns around, only to find Vicky, Nil, and Bharat. "What are you guys doing here?" she asks, eyeing them strangely. Mainly because they were on their knees, looking up at her with sad puppy eyes.

"We need your help!" they plead in unison.

"Okay, calm down you guys. Now close the doors, sit properly, and tell me what the problem is."

Once the boys are done explaining the predicament that they are in, Taani, who looks like she's about to pop a blood vessel, shouts at the top of her lungs, "ARE YOU FREAKING STUPID?!"

They know that they should be shocked that the girl people like to refer to as 'Princess' is scarier than Sharon at the moment, but they're too scared to be shocked at the moment.

"We get it, we're idiots, now help us," says Nil.

Taani glares at him, and then says, "Fine." She turns to Vicky and Bharat and says, "Go find your girlfriends, and explain to them that you're jealous morons, and that you're sorry. Now get out of here, I need to talk to Nilesh alone."

After Vicky and Bharat leave, Taani says, "Nilesh, Simmi's your best friend. You ignored her for some random girl. Of course she's going to be upset! A simple apology isn't going to fix that. You need to do something special for her. What's her favorite thing in the entire world?"

Nil thinks for a minute, and then finally says, "Stars. Simmi likes stars."

"Well, there are supposed to be clear skies out tonight. Go stargazing with her or something. Or better yet, take her out for a moonlight picnic. A girl always appreciates food."

"That's not a bad idea... thanks Taani!" He quickly gives Taani a hug and leaves.

Taani sighs. "These guys are all so weird. I gotta' find somewhere else to practice." She gets up and walks out of the fire escape.

As Taani's walking around to find an empty classroom, Arjun runs towards her and hides behind her. "Help me!" he shouts. "I got Pakao Pinky after me!"

Taani groans. "She's here too?"

But Arjun doesn't get to respond as a girl with a high-pitched voice comes towards them, saying, "There you are Juno baby."

"Thank god Nisha isn't here," mutters Taani. "She would've murdered this girl right on the spot."

Arjun fakes a smile and awkwardly waves at her. Pinky frowns and whines, "Why did you run away from me earlier?"

"Obviously because he doesn't like you, dumbass," mumbles Taani. Pinky glares at Taani and grabs Arjun's arm.

"Let's go Rockstar! We've got so much to catch up on," she says, dragging him away.

That is until Taani breaks her friend out of the she-devil's grip. She then turns to Pinky and says, "Pinky, let me be as clear as possible so your pea-sized brain can process what I'm about to say. You are the most annoying person that I have ever met! Oh, and you're really whiny and clingy. That's why no one likes you. Oh, and one more thing. You can call Arjun whatever creepy, cheesy nickname you want, but don't  _ever_  call him Rockstar. Bye!"

As Pinky stomps away, Arjun turns to Taani and asks, "Have I ever told you how much I love this new bitchitude of yours?"

"You can mention it more often. But now, I have to go find a quiet place. Don't you dare follow me or tell anyone where I am!" Arjun chuckles as his friend leaves, and heads to the canteen.

Taani, on the other hand, makes her way to the rehearsal hall, and lucky for her, it's empty. She sits down on one of the dice, finally happy that she found a quiet place. Until she hears footsteps coming her way. "You have got to be kidding me! What does a person have to do to get some peace and quiet around here?"

"I'm sorry," she hears the voice behind her say, "I just forgot my bag here."

Taani turns around and sees that it's Rey. She sighs. "I'm sorry. I've been trying to get some peace and quiet all day, and I'm just frustrated."

Rey chuckles. "It's okay. Can I help with anything?"

Taani bites her lip and asks "Do you have a minute?"

"Sure," says Rey, as he goes over and sits down on the dice beside her. Taani takes a deep breath as she begins to sing the song she just wrote.

Once she finishes, Rey's blown away. "Whoa, that was amazing! You're really talented, Taani. Did you write that yourself?"

"Um, yeah," says Taani, unsure as to why Rey's compliment was making her so nervous, "I've been working on it all day."

"Well, if you ever need a quiet place to practice, try the first floor. All those rooms are empty."

"Thanks Rey," says Taani, as Rey gets up and leaves.

* * *

As Taani comes home from work, she heads straight to her room. When she's done changing, Kriya comes in. "Hey di!" she says, flopping down on her bed. "Were you here the whole time?"

"Yeah, I was just getting food. Want some?"

"Sure," says Taani, taking a cookie from the container.

As Taani munches on her cookie, Kriya awkwardly says, "Princess, I'm really sorry -" Taani cuts her off by saying "Di, don't apologize. I'm fine." Kriya doesn't buy it, but decides to let it go.

"So, where are maasi and bhai?"

"Asleep."

"Already?"

"Well, they've been working a lot recently."

"Yeah, you're right. But you know what we should do?"

"What?"

"We should get jobs! You know, take a little financial stress off their shoulders?"

"You're right. But you already have a job."

"But you're going to have Footloose coming up, and bhai's on the team too. A second job is not going to kill me. Besides, the boutique doesn't pay that much anyway, despite the way it's taken off, it's still a fairly new, not to mention independent, business."

"Okay fine. But where should we work?"

"How about that café where bhai works?"

"No way! Waiting on tables for people? Neither of us would be able to handle that. And if we get fired, we might end up getting bhai fired in the process."

Taani sighs. "You're right. We need jobs we could actually enjoy."

The two think for a moment and then shout "I got it!" in unison.

"What's your idea?" asks Kriya.

"That you could work at the animal shelter! You love animals!"

"That's true. And I thought that you could start babysitting again. You love kids!"

"And you absolutely despise them! It's perfect." Taani then frowns when a pillow hits her face. That, is how a pillow fight starts.

* * *

"No, no no!" yells Saara, marching down the stairs with every intention of locking herself in her room. "No way di! I'm not doing this."

"But Saara I really need a sixth dancer!"

"Di, I'm not going to be dancing against my best-friend," protests Saara, walking into her room and slamming the door behind her.

A few minutes later, Vrushika opens the door.

"Saara?"

Saara sighs. "Come in."

Vrushika comes in and closes the door behind her. "Saara, listen to me okay? Di really needs you to do this. You're her only option. And if you won't do this for di, then think about the others. Think about Rey."

"But Kriya -" Saara starts to protest, but Vrushika cuts her off by saying, "Saara, you guys are best friends! I'm sure she'll understand."

Saara bites her lip and says, giving in. "Fine, I'll do it. I'll be the sixth dancer for Team Dazzlers."

Vrushika screams in joy and hugs her cousin. Saara tries to smile, but she's really thinking,  _"All hell is going to break loose tomorrow!"_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If anyone's wondering about Taani's original song, just search up "kya tum wohi ho summer camp" on Youtube.
> 
> Musical Inspiration: Freak Out by Chic


	11. The End of a Beautiful Friendship

"Di, come on! Get up already!" exclaims Taani, as she picks up one of Kriya's legs and drags off her bed. "You know, I really hate this whole role reversal thing." Once Kriya's on the ground, she sits up cross-legged and pouts. Taani kneels down and says, "Come on. Tell me what's going on."

"We still don't have a sixth dancer, and Sharon probably already has her sixth dancer, and I'm going to be seen as a failure! I was so stupid -" Kriya begins to ramble, but Taani cuts her off.

"Enough! Di, you can never be a failure. It's not like you to give up like this. This isn't the Kriya Shekhawat I know. And don't you think Saara would've told us if the Dazzlers found their sixth dancer?"

Kriya sighs. "You're right Princess. Now come on, help me up." Taani helps her sister up, and Kriya heads towards the bathroom. But before she closes the door, she says, "You know you're fixing my bed right?" to which Taani groans. Kriya chuckles as her sister gets to work.

Once Taani's finished fixing Kriya's bed, she makes her way to the dining table. Hugging her maasi from behind she exclaims, "Good morning maasi!"

"Good morning beta! Is your sister still a zombie, or did you give her a pep-talk?"

"Pep-talk," replies Taani, as she starts to eat her breakfast.

Just then, Taani's face falls into her bowl of cereal due to Swayam roughly ruffling her hair. "Oops, sorry Princess," Swayam says nervously, running for his life.

Taani growls, "I'm going to go fix my face, and then ruin  _his_!" before marching off to her room.

Smriti looks up at the sky and asks, "What other parent or guardian has to deal with this?"

As Taani enters her room, Kriya gets out of the bathroom and almost screams. Taani glares at her and growls, "Not. Another. Word!" Kriya nods her head, and runs away as fast as she can, trying to hold her laughter.

* * *

"Okay, that's it!" exclaims Saara, as she lunges for Vrushika's phone.

Vrushika quickly gets her phone out of her cousin's reaches, moving towards the edge of the living room couch. "Hey! What gives?"

Saara stands up, hands on her hips, staring down at Vrushika. "I want to know who you're texting."

"You could've just asked."

"Would you have responded?"

"Potentially."

"Would you have told me the truth?"

"Of course not! Jeez, can't a person just be entitled to some privacy?"

Saara crosses her arms over chest, narrowing her eyes at her cousin. "Vrushi, you've been texting this person nonstop, and I just want to know who has my cousin's undivided attention."

Vrushika sigh, finally giving in. "Okay fine! It's Swayam."

"Wait, Swayam? Swayam Shekhawat?" Seeing Vrushika nod her head, Saara adds, "Wow, looks like you guys really hit it off."

"Yeah we did," says Vruhsika, turning slightly pink.

"Oh my god! Vrushika Rai Prakash, are you blushing?"

"Saara, we're just friends. Besides, the whole world knows that Swayam loves Sharon di."

"Except for Sharon di."

"Exactly."

"Guys, come on! You're getting late!" yells Sharon.

"Speak of the devil," mutters Saara, as she and Vrushika while walking outside to their respective cars.

* * *

"Aashi, did you seriously attempt to cook again?" demands Rey, running into the smoke-filled kitchen.

"Well, kaka's not here. And Nisha's the only one here who knows how to cook and she's sleeping!" Aashi shouts at him, using a towel to put the fire out.

"What the hell guys?!" screeches Nisha, terrified at the sight in front of her. "Are you guys trying to burn down the house or something? Move!" She shoves her cousins out of the way, gets the fire extinguisher and puts the fire out. She turns to her cousins and firmly states, "Neither of you are allowed near this kitchen. Ever!"

As Nisha marches away, Rey asks, absolutely no one in particular, "What did I do?"

* * *

The main foyer of St. Louis was packed. Everyone was curious as to what the big announcement could be. RDX sir steps on stage and says into the microphone, "Good morning students! As some of you may know, due to certain circumstances, we had lost our beloved Cultural Secretary last semester, but now he's back! So without further ado, please welcome on stage, Mr. Shivam Dutta!" Everyone claps, and then soon the crowd begins to disperse. Only the dance teams and their friends are left. Along with Shivam of course.

As soon as Shivam comes off stage, Aashi immediately goes and hugs him. "Hey Bozo," she tells him, the biggest smile on her face.

"Hi," he says, smiling right back at her. Soon, one by one, the other Weaklings go up and hug him as well; Swayam, then Neha, and then Bharat.

When Shivam turns around, he comes face to face with Sharon.

"Hey Superbitch."

"Nice to see you too  _Shirritating_ ," she drawls bitingly. Shivam smirks and walks away. Sharon silently yells in frustration and walks off to class, with her friends following her. Bharat, Neha, Aashi, and Swayam awkwardly make their way to class as well.

The Freshers all look at each other. "What was that?" asks Taani.

"I don't know," replies Saara, "but I'm intrigued."

"Shall we find out?" asks Kriya.

"Yes we shall!" declares Nisha.

"Well this should be fun," remarks Vrushika, snorting.

The girls all turn to look at Arjun who says, "Um, yeah, no. I would like to see past eighteen, so I'll just see you guys in class." With that, Arjun makes a run for it, as the girls roll their eyes and make their to class.

"What's Hitler going to bitch about today?" Saara groans as they walk into APS.

"Saara," say Kriya and Taani in a disapproving tone, as they all take their seats.

"Good morning class," says Professor Ananya, walking in.

"Good morning ma'am," says the class, like well-rehearsed drones.

"Alright, so today, you guys are going to start your first assignment."

"Seriously? It's only the third day!" mutters Saara.

Professor Ananya turns to Saara and icily demands, "Is there a problem Miss Rai Prakash?"

"Nope," says Saara, giving her the sweetest most innocent smile that she can muster.

"Good, that's what I thought. Now for this assignment, you will be paired up. And no you are not allowed to choose your own groups. Now the assignment is for the Psychology strand of this class. You'll simply have to do a case study. Does everyone understand?" Everyone nods their heads. "What, you all don't have the ability to speak or something?"

Just then, Karan rushes into class, panting, and says, "Sorry ma'am I -" but gets cut off by Professor Ananya.

"It's fine Mr. Modi. Please go take your seat." Not missing a beat, she continues, "Now, as for the groups, Taani and Vishesh. Kriya and Abhishek. Arjun and Pinky. Saara and Karan." As Professor Ananya continues on with the groups, Taani, Kriya and Arjun groan, as Karan awkwardly smiles at Saara, only to have her glare at him in return.

"It's official! Hitler didi is out to get me!" Saara exclaims dramatically as they all sit down at the canteen after class.

"Sweetie, I think she's out to get everyone," Taani points out gently.

"I have to be with Pinky," says Arjun, for the thirty-third time, refusing to believe it.

"Hey, being with a bunch of creeps isn't as bad as being with your ex, okay? Now quit your whining!"

"You want a carrot muffin honey?" asks Kriya, glancing sympathetically at her aggravated best-friend.

"Yes," pouts Saara, putting her head on Kriya's shoulder.

"I'll go get the muffin," says Taani.

"Don't try buying coffee for yourself," Arjun, Kriya, Saara, and Nisha say in unison.

"Ah fuck!" curses Taani, as she goes and buys a carrot muffin.

"Wait, why should she not buy coffee for herself?" asks Vrushika.

"Because it's dangerous for her, and those around her," Nisha replies darkly.

"You know what? I'm just going to let it stay at that."

"That's probably the best idea."

When Taani comes back, she hands Saara her muffin. "Thanks Taani," says Saara, eating her muffin. Just then, Kriya's phone beeps and she sees a text from Swayam.

"Hey sis, come to RDX sir's office. We need to register for Footloose."

"Who's that?" asks Taani.

"Bhai. Time to go register our team." Saara nervously looks at Vrushika who gives her a reassuring smile.

"WHAT?!" demands Kriya, once she meets the team right outside RDX sir's office.

"Did Swayam not give you the memo that we found a male dancer who's really good?" asks Aashi.

"No! You guys, I've been worrying about this all day."

"Sorry Kriya," says Neha.

Kriya sighs, exasperated. "It's okay. Let's go in."

When they go in, they see that team Dazzlers is already there. Kriya and Sharon momentarily glare at each other, but soon look away.

"So, which team wants to start first?" asks RDX sir.

"We do!" exclaims Sharon, smirking at Kriya who glares at her.

"All right Sharon, who are your team members?"

"Me, Rey, Nilesh, Vicky, Simmi, and Saara."

Kriya and Taani immediately look at Saara. While Taani looks surprised and confused, Kriya looks hurt.

And Saara hates it when Kriya looks hurt.

"So Kriya, who are your team members?" asks RDX. Kriya tears her eyes away from Saara and replies, "Me, Swayam, Neha, Aashi, Bharat, and -" Kriya gets cut off due to Karan entering the room, panting.

"Sorry I'm late."

"And Karan," Aashi finishes for Kriya.

Now Saara's the one who looks hurt. And not only does she look hurt, but she looks pissed.

And Kriya hates it when Saara looks pissed.

"Alright guys. Auditions are in about a week or so. Good luck to everyone!" says RDX sir, before everyone exits the room.

Karan, Arjun, and Nisha automatically know to leave, while Swayam gestures Bharat, Aashi, and Neha to follow him. Sharon looks like she wants to stay, but Vrushika gives her a look, and she, along with friends, leaves. So now it's just the 3Js, Kriya, Taani, and Saara, standing alone in the hallway.

Saara shoves Kriya and demands, "How could do this to me?!"

"Me?!" shouts an outraged Kriya. "You're the one who's siding with the enemy!"

"The  _enemy_  is my cousin! You're the one who's siding with the enemy. Do you not remember how Karan broke my heart into a million pieces and made me cry day and night?"

"Saara -" Taani begins to say, but Kriya cuts her off.

"Of course I do! You bring it up every chance you get."

"Di!" yells Taani, shocked at what her sister just said.

"Let her finish Taani," says Saara, her voice quivering with pain, tears threatening to spill, "Go on Kriya. I'd love to hear more about how much of a burden I am to you." She wipes her tears away and continues, "You know what? I knew you were going to be upset about me being on Team Dazzlers, but I thought you'd understand."

"Understand what?!" demands Kriya, bewildered at her best friend. "Understand how you couldn't just wait to stab me in the back? You betrayed me! It was only a matter of time before Sharon got to you."

BAM! The final strike. Saara slapped Kriya.

"Enough! I can't believe that after twelve years of friendship, you still don't know me well enough to know  _why_  I did what did!" shouts Saara, tears streaming down her face, mascara smeared on her cheeks. "You know what? Maybe we just shouldn't even be friends!"

"Okay, that is ridiculous -" Taani begins to say, but Kriya cuts her off, once again.

"No, no it's not," says Kriya, now tearing up herself. "She's right. We shouldn't be friends. In fact, I think that we should just stop talking altogether." Kriya stomps away as Taani turns to Saara.

"You can't be serious," she says, but Saara doesn't respond. She runs away, as Taani screams in frustration, unsure as to what she should do. She punches her hand into the wall, and sits down on the bench. She puts her head down in her hands and begins to cry.

"How did this happen?" she asks herself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Musical Inspiration: Namida, the Skip Beat! ending song


	12. I'll Always Care

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> To anyone who's curious about the exact date of where this story is at right now, it is April 15th, literally whatever fucking year you're reading this story is the year it takes place. Happy reading!

Kriya and Saara hadn't spoken to each other in a week. Never mind speaking, the two girls wouldn't even look at each other! All they've done is space out. Whether it's in class or during dance rehearsals, the girls were just not in the zone that week. And let's not even bring up Neha's nineteenth birthday party yesterday, which was an awkward affair for everyone.

But nevertheless, the two still cared about each other. Whether it was Saara subtly stopping Sharon from insulting Kriya, or Kriya yelling at the bimbos in the locker room that gossiped about Saara... they couldn't deny that they would always care.

"Guys, this has gone on long enough," says Swayam, slamming his fist down on the canteen table. "Those two are miserable!"

"I know," groans Aashi, nodding her head in agreement. She then turns her head towards Taani and asks, "Taani, why don't you do anything about this?"

"That's just it! I don't know what to do! Di and Saara never fight!"

"She's right," Nisha informs them. "Saara's always the one who ends up being the mediator."

"Exactly! I don't how to deal with this."

"You'll figure it out Taani," Vrushika assures her friend, patting her back.

"I hope so," says Bharat. "Rehearsals have been a nightmare."

"Yeah, Kriya's been seriously bipolar," says Neha. "One minute she's being a tyrant like she's being possessed by Sharon, and the other she's just... spaced out!"

"Also like she's being possessed by Sharon," Neha decides to add a beat later.

"So basically, Kriya's just being possessed by Sharon, and no one likes that," remarks Aashi, earning disapproving glances from everyone but Taani.

The Dazzlers, sitting at the opposite end of the canteen, are just as worried as the others are. "What are we going to do about Saara you guys?" asks Simmi.

"Yeah, she's starting to scare  _me_ ," says Sharon, "and that's saying something."

"Oh look, here she comes," says Nil, pointing to the entrance.

As Saara's about to enter, someone bumps into her. And who bumped into her? Why Kriya of course! The two girls glare at each other. They try to enter at the same time, only to bump into each other, once again. The two stop and stare at each other. Kriya gestures with her eyes for Saara to go first, while Saara gestures for her to go first.

This tennis match between their eyes goes on for the next ten minutes. And they could've done this all day, if it wasn't for Karan who pushed them both forward. Thankfully, the two girls didn't fall. They turn and glare at the boy who just shrugs and walks away.

"He is a dead man," they both mutter, then glance at each other. They walk away to their respective tables, Kriya with the Weaklings and Saara with the Dazzlers.

"Heeey Kri..." Nisha trails off nervously, treading carefully, as if she were walking through a landmine... or Swayam's room.

"Hi," Kriya says with a slight smile.

"So..." Swayam says awkwardly, "rehearsal today?"

"Um, yeah, I'll meet you guys at the usual time."

A moment of awkward silence passes by, and Taani, who absolutely despises awkward silences, decides to speak up. "So, is anybody hungry?"

"I am!" Kriya exclaims quickly, relieved that someone finally spoke up. "I'm in the mood for a pastry."

"Cool, I'll get it for you," says Taani, getting out of her seat, but Kriya quickly brings her down.

"Oh no you don't! After that stunt you pulled with the coffee three days ago, I'm not going to trust you to get food for us, ever! I'll go get it."

Meanwhile, with the Dazzlers, Sharon is talking about her birthday.

"I'm so excited! Oh god, I can't stop smiling, how do people do this?"

"You're always excited for your birthday Shar," Simmi points out. But Sharon doesn't pay attention. She just keeps smiling and screaming in a high-pitched voice.

"Okay, I don't know if she's scary when she's angry, or happy," Saara whispers to Rey.

"Me neither," he whispers back.

"Oh hey, Saara, can you get me a pastry?" Vicky asks out of the blue.

Simmi rolls her eyes at best-friend cum brother. "You have legs of your own Vicky, and they work perfectly fine."

Saara chuckles and gets up. "Chill Simmi." She then turns to Vicky and says, "I'll go get your pastry, Vicky."

"Thank you!" he calls after her.

"Vanilla cream pastry with a cherry on top," both girls say at once. They turn to each other and glare.

"I was here first," says Saara.

"I was born first."

"What does that have to do with anything?"

"HA! I knew you'd talked to me before I talked to you," says Kriya, a smug grin on her face.

"That does not count!" But Kriya's grin doesn't leave her face. Saara glares at her and then grabs a cupcake off of someone's table. She smashes it onto Kriya's face and sweetly says, "You like cupcakes, don't you  _Kri_?"

Kriya's shocked at what Saara has had done. She finds a glass of juice on the counter, and dumps it on Saara. "You always did say that fruits are good for your hair," says Kriya, a wide plastic smile on her face. Saara, now furious, grabs a pie, and smashes it onto Kriya's face.

Only, it wasn't Kriya's face because Kriya had ducked. So who's face was it? Why Karan's of course! The pie slowly falls off Karan's face. Saara bites her lip, as Kriya gets up.

"Oh my god," she mutters, seeing Karan's face.

"That was meant for her!" exclaims Saara, pointing at Kriya.

"Excuse me?" demands Kriya, turning towards Saara. She then grabs a plate of pasta and flings it at Saara, who had started to run away. Unfortunately for Kriya, Saara had ducked, so the plate of pasta hit the one and only, Reyaansh Singhania.

"You're kidding right?" he says, pulling noodles out of his hair.

Saara gets up and sees her best-friend covered in pasta.

"Oh shit," she mutters. Saara and Kriya exchange nervous glances and make a run for it. They run behind Nisha, who soon became the victim of Rey and Karan's revenge.

Rey and Karan nervously look at the bottles of ketchup and mustard in their hands and quickly throw them away. Nisha looks down at her shirt, and takes a deep breath.

"This was my favorite shirt," she says calmly, then grabbing two cups of coffee and shouting, "and you're both idiots!" She throws the coffee in their direction, which unfortunately gets on Arjun due to him coming in between Nisha and the boys. Nisha's eyes go wide, and she gives the innocent bystander in front of her an awkward smile.

"At least it was cold coffee," she says sweetly. Arjun wasn't buying it for a second. Nisha tries to run away, but Arjun is fast. Out of the corner of her eye, she sees Arjun grab a glass of chocolate milk. She starts panic, and quickly hides behind Sharon.

Which Arjun didn't see coming.

Yeah, he threw the chocolate milk on Sharon.

The whole canteen goes silent... until Vicky yells, "FOOD FIGHT!"

"What?" demands Sharon, turning around to face her friend, only to get hit in the face with a sandwich.

"This means war!"

Soon, the whole canteen turns into a battlefield. It was everyone for themselves. And poor innocent Taani was left all alone to think of a way to put a stop to this madness. Yes, Taani Shekhawat is now officially the only sane person in this place. Heaven help us!

"Krishnaji, please help me!" whines Taani, hiding under the table. You know, where she's safe. She soon lays her eyes on a big bottle of Coke. She smiles as she gets an idea. Getting on her hands and knees, Taani crawls to the bottle of Cokes, trying not to get hit with any of the flying food in the process. Once she reaches the bottle, she grabs it and gets up. She violently shakes the bottle, and then opens it facing sideways, spraying everyone in the canteen.

Everybody stops what they're doing when Taani sprays them with the Coke. Taani smirks and says, "Now that I have your full attention, I want  _all_ of you to clean up this place, and then clean up yourselves." Everyone decides to do as Taani says, mainly because they're terrified, but also because they don't want to get into any trouble.

As Kriya and Saara begin to follow the others, Taani shouts, "Not you two! You guys, are going to follow me." Kriya and Saara exchange nervous glances, and do as their scary best-friend says. They don't call her Jhansi ki Rani for nothing!

"Why are we here Taani?" asks Saara, once the girls are inside the rehearsal hall.

"We're here because you two are being ridiculous, and you're both making each other miserable! Not to mention  _me_ , and literally anyone that comes in contact with you. Little Rohan who I babysat a few days back is still scarred for life after the Aloe vera incident!"

"Oh," is the response that she gets from them.

"Oh? OH?!" She looks at Kriya, and then at Saara, her eyes twitching. "Look at you guys! You're letting one small misunderstanding come between twelve years of friendship!"

Now, Taani is not someone who cries easily, so seeing the tears threatening to spill out of her eyes had her best-friends worried.

"You guys are best-friends! You've always been there for each other, especially during the five years when I couldn't be there for either of you." Both Saara and Kriya's eyes widen at what their best-friend just said. They look at each other, knowing that the same thing is running through their minds: " _Taani just brought up the forbidden five years, which means we screwed up bad_."

They turn back to Taani, who they see is still trying really hard not to cry. "Please don't let this small misunderstanding ruin your friendship! Just, talk to each other, please! That's all I'm asking you to do."

"I'm not talking to her!" shouts Kriya.

"And I'm not talking to her!" snaps Saara.

"Seriously? Okay, you know what, just stay here for a minute." She marches out of the rehearsal hall, not only closing the doors behind her, but also locking them from the outside.

"What the hell?" demands Saara, running towards the doors with Kriya following her.

"Taani, open the door!" exclaims Kriya, banging on the door. Just then, both girls hear their phones beep at the same.

It's a text from Taani.

"I'm not letting you guys out of here until you talk and solve your problems," reads Kriya.

"PS, you're both being stupid and if you don't make up, not only will you regret it, but I will also hate the both of you forever," Saara continues.

"Love Taani," both girls read simultaneously. They look at each other and groan. Saara walks over to the mirrors and sits down. Kriya sits down beside her. They stay silent for a couple minutes.

Until their phones beep again.

"The sooner you guys talk and make up and stuff, the sooner you'll get out of here," reads Saara.

"And yes, I am able to hear you, so talk," Kriya continues.

"She's relentless," mutters Saara.

"Tell me about it," grumbles Kriya.

After a moment of silence, Saara gets the courage to ask, "Why?"

Kriya looks at her and asks, "Why what?"

"Why did you overreact like that on me joining Team Dazzlers? Yes, I knew that you would get mad, but I also knew that you'd understand. Di's important to me, and so are her friends. It's so unlike to be that  _accusing_!"

Kriya sighs in defeat. Guess there was no getting out of this. Kriya Shekhawat had to the one thing she despised more than seeing Sharon Rai Prakash's face every day... talk about her feelings.

"I know, I know! And I'm really sorry. I don't why, but I was scared that I'd lose you as a friend." Saara raises an eyebrow, gesturing for her friend to continue, "I thought that maybe Sharon had gotten to you or something. You have so much respect for her, and you've always told me that she's your ideal role model, and her opinion matters so much to you! So I just thought that maybe she convinced you that all I'd ever do is hurt you. Look, I know it's really stupid -"

Saara cuts her friend off by protesting, "It's not!" Saara puts her hands on her best-friend's shoulders and says, "Listen to me Kriya, you had every right to freak out over what I did. What you think is not stupid. You're human, you assume things. I would never blame you for that. And we've been friends for so long! A lot of people have tried to convince me that you're a bad friend, but I know that you're not. Sharon di no different. Yes, I love her and respect her. Yes, her opinion will always matter to me, but so will your friendship. And I am so sorry that I jumped conclusions and accused you of betraying me. Aashi di told me later on that you had  _no_  idea about Karan being on the team. I was the one being the bad friend! I-"

Kriya cuts off her best-friend by hugging her. "Don't ever say that!" she shouts, evident that she's crying. "You are the best-friend that anybody could ask for, and I was the one being a jerk to you. You care about your family just as much as you care about me. I should've been able to understand that!"

Saara breaks out of the hug, and Kriya sees tears in her friend's eyes. "And I should've been able to understand that my best-friend would never do anything to hurt me. I said a lot of awful things to you, and I will regret it every day of my life."

"I said some pretty awful things to you too Jwalu. And you have no idea how sorry I am," says Kriya, getting up. She brings her hand out for Saara and asks, "Friends forever?"

Saara grabs her best friend's hand, and gets up. "And ever," she says, hugging Kriya like her life depended on it.

"Oh my god, ew, you're sticky and covered in food," Kriya teases a few moments later.

"Hey, so are you!" says Saara, in a fake hurt voice. "And did you just say 'oh my god' and 'ew'?"

"Oh shut up!" Kriya says playfully. They both burst out laughing, and that's when Taani opens the doors.

"Well it's about damn time!" she exclaims, running up to her best-friends and hugging them. The two girls chuckle at Taani's antics and hug her back.

"Guys, please promise me that you won't do anything like this again," says Taani.

Kriya and Saara look at each other and smile.

"We promise."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Musical Inspiration: Friends Forever from W.I.T.C.H.


	13. Happy Birthday Sharon!

"Sh, guys be quiet!" hisses Saara, throwing a couple balloons around Sharon's room.

"Well sor _ry_ ," Arjun says dramatically, as Vrushika slaps him on the back of his head.

She then turns to Saara and asks "You got your noisemaker?"

"Yup! Party hats?"

"Check!" says Arjun.

Suddenly, Vrushika sees Sharon moving around and whispers, "Oh crap, I think she's waking up!"

They all get around Sharon as she starts opening her eyes. When she sees her cousins in front of her, a shocked Sharon begins to ask, "What the -" but is cut off by said cousins yelling, "Surprise!" in her face.

Sharon gets up with a jolt, prompting her cousins to gleefully say, "Happy birthday Sharon di!"

They all hug her as she says, "Aw, you guys... thank you so much!"

Once they break the hug, Saara says, "Alright, now come on! We made breakfast for you."

"Um, correction, I made breakfast for her," Vrushika points out. "You guys  _attempted_  to set the table."

"Details, details," says Arjun, waving his hand. "Now come on di!"

"I'm coming, I'm coming," says Sharon, chuckling. "Let me brush my teeth first!"

"No time, food's fresh, and don't you know that you're supposed to brush your teeth  _after_  eating?" Vrushika informs her in one go, all while dragging her to the dining table.

Sharon's about to argue, when she exclaims, "Oh my god, you guys!" at the sight of the food laid out on the dining table. "You made all my favorites! Buttermilk pancakes, waffles, french toast! You even remembered the maple syrup! And the whipped cream! And the berries!" She picks up a berry and eats it. "Yum! These are so fresh! Where'd you guys get these?"

"Uh... Nisha knows a guy," Saara says nervously, not wanting Sharon to know that they got them from Neha's garden.

Sharon shrugs and sits down. "Come on guys, I'm not gonna' eat all of this by myself!"

As they're eating the food, Arjun says, "Vrushi, you're amazing! This food is great."

"Seriously, I love you for this," says Sharon, although you couldn't hear her very quickly due to the food in her mouth.

Vrushika chuckles. "I'm glad you guys liked it."

Soon, they all finish their food and get up. They head to their respective rooms to get dressed.

Half an hour later, Arjun is still waiting for Saara to get ready, while Vrushika's still waiting for Sharon. The two cousins look at each other and sigh. "How much longer do think they're going to take?" asks Arjun.

"Another five minutes for Saara, and definitely another ten to fifteen minutes for Sharon di."

"Why can't they be more like you? Change out of sleeping pants, put something over sleeping shirt, get the one pair of shoes that you have, and you're done!"

"For your information, I did not sleep in this shirt! And I have more than  _one_  pair of shoes."

"What are you two arguing about this time?" asks Saara, walking towards them, as she puts her hair up in a slightly messy bun.

"Don't you think that the heels and leather pants are a bit much for college?" Arjun asks his twin, gesturing towards the pants that were probably cutting off her blood circulation, and the shoes of death that would actually cause her death.

"It's Sharon di's birthday. So unlike  _some_  people, cough cough Vrushika,  _I_  made an effort." Vrushika sticks her tongue out at Saara, causing Arjun to chuckle.

Just then, Sharon walks out of her room and sighs at the sight in front of her. "Oh stop it! You're behaving like children."

"Sorry di," they all say at once.

Sharon smiles. "It's okay. Now, how do I look?" Sharon then proceeds to do a little twirl for them.

"Princessy," says Vrushika. "Kind of innocent."

"Is that good or bad?"

"You look amazing di," Saara assures her.

"Yes, everyone looks amazing!" exclaims Arjun. "Now can we please hurry up? If I don't get to Kriya's place in like the next ten minutes, she will murder me."

"No she won't," Saara says casually. "Besides, you're always late, and she always threatens to murder you, but has she ever actually laid a hand on you?"

"Gee, thanks sis. That's so comforting," Arjun says sarcastically, rolling his eyes.

"Sarcastic today aren't we?" Vrushika teases, only to get a glare in return from her cousin. Sharon chuckles as they all head outside to their respective cars.

* * *

"Okay, is there a color theme that we're not aware of?" Kriya asks once she sees her friends walk up to her and Taani's table in the canteen after their first class.

"No, it's just that it's Sharon di's birthday, and we have this tradition wear me, Vrushi, and Nish would wear red, and Neha, Simmi di, and Aashi di would wear white," explains Saara.

"Why?" asks Taani.

"Because pink is Sharon's favorite color, and red and white make pink," explains Aashi.

"Aw, that's so cute!" gushes Taani.

"Except I'm not a part of it anymore," Aashi says sadly.

"And neither am I," adds Neha.

"So it's her birthday huh?" Kriya says quickly, wanting to change the topic. "Maybe I'll try to stay out of her way for today."

"Me too," says Taani.

"Thanks you guys," says Saara, hugging her best-friends.

"I take it that you guys are best-friends again," says Neha, smiling at the trio.

"Yup!" says Kriya, smiling brightly. "Best-friends forever!"

"Aw, that's great," says Aashi. "Well, I'm going to get food because Rey almost burned down our kitchen this morning."

"I specifically told you both to stay as far away from the kitchen as possible, but no! Did you listen to me? Of course not!" rants Nisha, following her cousin.

"I better go after them," says Neha.

"I'll come with you," says Vrushika, not wanting poor sweet Neha to be stuck in the middle of a Singhania sisters brawl.

Just then, Sharon walks into the canteen with Simmi. Once Kriya and Taani see her, they say, "I'm going to go now." Before Saara can stop them, they'd already gotten out of their seats. As they're about to walk out of the canteen, Sharon sees them and smirks.

She walks over to them and innocently asks, "Leaving so soon?"

"Um, we've got work to do," says Taani, wanting to get away from there as soon as possible. Something about Sharon just aggravates her to no end, it's like she can't help but snap back at her.

"Don't leave without an invitation to my party," says Sharon, handing the girls two envelopes. Taani and Kriya nervously take the envelopes from her.

"You're seriously inviting us to your party?" asks Kriya, raising an eyebrow.

"Why not? But, it  _is_  a party. So try to look nice."

"What's that supposed to mean?" asks Kriya, crossing her arms over her chest.

"It means that you Miss Kripa actually have to make an effort to look decent. Meaning, you can't come like you just got out of bed. You could learn a thing or two from your cousin."

"Hey, mind -" begins Taani, but Kriya stops her. She nods her head no, gesturing to where Saara is. Taani gives her a slight nod, and turns back to Sharon. "We'll be there oh great Wicked Vampire Queen," Taani says sarcastically, giving Sharon a sweet smile.

"What did you just call me?" demands Sharon, her voice shrill.

"I said queen," Taani says innocently, before dragging her cousin away from the canteen.

Once they're out in the hallway, Taani asks "Are you okay di?"

"I'm fine Princess," Kriya assures her, giving her a slight smile. "Um, I'll see you later okay? I have some work to do."

As she watches her cousin walk away, Taani knows that what Sharon said hurt her cousin. She wasn't just mad, no, she was furious. "Birthday or not, she is going down!" she hisses before heading back to the canteen.

Meanwhile, in girls' locker room, Simmi is mad Sharon for what she had just to Kriya.

"What the hell Shar? Why'd you do that?!"

"Because of  _her_ , my cousin was a mess for weeks! She deserved that," Sharon spits out venomously.

"Sharon, that was not her fault," Simmi points out, trying to get her friend to listen to reason. "It was all just a misunderstanding."

"Oh, so you're on her side now?!"

Simmi sighs, trying not to get frustrated. "I'm not anyone's side Sharon. But that was cruel! You obviously hurt that poor girl."

"Well, that poor girl hurt my cousin!"

"Why are you acting like this?!" demands Simmi, now getting frustrated by her best friend's actions.

"Me?! You're the one who's acting strange! You're taking that- that Weakling's side!"

"For the last time Sharon, I am not picking sides! How could you accuse me of something like that? You're my best friend, and I thought that you knew me better than anyone else!"

"And I thought that you knew me! Clearly, I was wrong."

Simmi runs her hands through her hair in frustration. "I do know you! But not  _this_ you. I know the sweet Sharon Rai Prakash who doesn't go out of her way to be mean to people."

"Yeah well, that Sharon Rai Prakash was an idiot. And she's also dead. Gone. Never coming back."

Simmi stays silent for the longest time, before she finally says, "I'm sorry to hear that Shar."

She then opens her locker, prompting Sharon to ask, "What are you doing?"

"Getting this." Simmi takes a package out of her locker and hands it to Sharon.

"What's this?"

"Your birthday present." Then Simmi snaps her fingers, continuing, "Shoot, my bad! This is the  _dead_  Sharon Rai Prakash's birthday present. You know, the one who's gone, never coming back? You think you can pass it onto her?"

"Simmi -"

"I'm done."

Sharon looks taken aback by her friend's sharp tone. "What do you mean you're done?"

"I'm done with this new, bitchy mean girl who has completely taken over what used to my best friend, one of the sweetest girls on this planet. And when that girl comes back, give me a call because honestly, I really miss her, and so does the rest of the world." Simmi slams her locker door shut, and turns around to walk away. But before leaving, she says one last thing.

"Happy fucking birthday Sharon Rai Prakash."

Once she leaves, Sharon sits down on the bench and begins to cry. "Shit," she mutters. "Shit, shit, shit, fucking shit!" She looks at the package in her hands and decides to open it. Once she does, she sees a picture frame. It's golden, covered in gorgeous pink gems. Simmi had obviously slaved over it for weeks.

Sharon starts to cry even harder when she sees the picture. It was taken by Bharat, back when they were fifteen or sixteen. Back when she was carefree and happy. Sharon puts the picture frame on her bag. She gets up, and walks out of the girls' locker room.

Once she's outside, a familiar male voice stops her. "And the isolation begins," she hears the voice say. Sharon turns around and sees none other than Shivam.

"What do you want?"

"Ooo, touchy," says Shivam, wiggling his eyebrows. He then smirks as he continues, "I always thought that either Rey or Vicky would be the first ones to go after Aashi. Simmi, I did not expect."

Sharon looks genuinely confused. "What are you talking about?"

"I'm talking about the fact that all your friends are going to leave you, Sharon," says Shivam, his hard expression softening. "They're getting sick of this whole Dazzlers versus Weaklings crap! Everyone is. So just, put an end to all of this. You're going to regret it otherwise."

"My friends would never leave me Shivam."

Shivam shakes his head, scoffing. "Seriously, you're still in denial? Aashi, your best-friend - remember her? - hasn't properly spoken to you in a year. Simmi is beyond pissed at you right now. And Vicky probably secretly hates you because he loves Neha, but he can't be with her all because of you in all your stubborn glory! Sharon, one day, you're going to be all alone. Don't say I didn't warn you." With that, Shivam walks away, leaving Sharon dazed and confused.

* * *

Kriya storms into the rehearsal hall while muttering, "I will not cry, I will not cry. I am stronger than that! This is nothing. She doesn't affect me!" She puts her bag aside and sits down, hugging her knees to her chest. When the tears begin to fall, Kriya quickly gets up and wipes them away.

"Dance! Yes, dance will help to distract me." She fumbles through her bag, trying to get her iPod out.

She takes her blue shirt off, and ties it around her waist. Then she takes off her sneakers so she's barefoot. She then places her iPod on one of the dice, and plays a song. As the song starts to play, Kriya gets even more upset, but she decides to dance to it anyway.

_Nagmen Hain_

She gracefully brings out one arm.

_Shikve Hain_

And then brings out the other arm.

_Kisse Hain_

She crosses both arms in front of her, like a bird flapping its wings.

_Baate Hain_

She spins around.

***music***

She brings her leg up, and does multiple pirouettes.

_Nagmen Hain_

She steps to the side, and dramatically brings her arm across in a semi-circle.

_Shikve Hain_

She does the same with the other side.

_Kisse Hain_

She brings both arms forward in front of her.

_Baate Hain_

She puts her arms up in the air, and slowly does the splits.

_Baatein_

She puts her legs together so she's hugging her knees.

_Bhool Jaati Hain_

She lays down on her back, her arms straight and over her head.

_Yaadein_

She flips her legs over her head, so it looks like she's doing a somersault.

_Yaad Aati Hain_

She hugs herself while getting up.

_Baatein_

She runs over to the barre, and grips it with both hands.

_Bhool Jaati Hain_

She turns around, holding the barre from the back.

_Yaadein_

She moves under the barre, still holding onto it.

_Yaad Aati Hain_

Letting go of the barre, she leans against the mirrors, and slides down.

_Yeh Yaadein Kisi Dil-O-Jaanam Ke_

She hugs her knees to her chest, and puts her head down.

_Chale Jaane Ke Baad Aati Hain_

Soon, Kriya begins to cry her heart out.

_Yaadein_

She slowly brings her head up.

_Yaadein_

She puts her arms to her sides, and balls them into fists, gripping the cloth of her blue shirt.

_Yaadein_

She cries even harder as she remembers something from back when she was little.

***music***

She remembers when she was little, and she went up to her dad and showed him the trophies and medals she got from sports day.

She remembers being a nave and innocent girl, hoping that her dad would be proud of her.

Instead, he told her to stop her "nonsense" and go play with her dolls.

Kriya learned about stereotypes and the norms of society that day, and what it was like to cry herself to sleep.

_Ye Jeevan_

Kriya furiously gets up.

_Dil Jaane_

Then she impulsively jumps over the barre, not caring that she could've gotten hurt.

_Dariya Ka_

She does a pirouette.

_Hai Paani_

She gracefully brings her arms down after finishing her pirouette.

_Paani To_

She leaps across the floor.

_Beh Jaaye_

Then lays down.

_Baaki Kya_

She gracefully gets up like a swan while bringing her knees to her chest.

_Reh Jaaye_

She grabs her feet, and flips over.

_Yaadein_

She gets up while bringing her hand to her chest.

_Yaadein_

She spins around.

_Yaadein_

She brings her leg up to her head, and does the splits again, with her head resting on her ankle.

Kriya gets up, and turns off her iPod. She puts her sneakers back on, but leaves her shirt as it is. She gets her bag, and turns around. What she doesn't expect, is to see Simmi when she does so.

"You didn't see that did you?" asks Kriya, cringing.

Simmi smiles kindly at the younger girl. "Every second of it. You're a really talented dancer."

"Thanks," mutters Kriya, walking towards the exit.

"Before you go, I want to say something to you," says Simmi, stopping Kriya in her tracks.

Now curious, Kriya asks, "What?"

"I want to say that I'm sorry. I'm really, really sorry for what Sharon said to you."

"It's not a big deal to me," says Kriya, lying on the spot.

"Yes, it is! I can see it in your eyes."

Kriya furrows her eyebrows in confusion. "How?"

"Because I used to have that same look in my eyes. That insecurity of thinking that you're not pretty enough. That anger towards society for their stereotypes and unwritten rules. I've been through that."

"Well if you know so much about it, then why don't you tell me how to make it stop!" snaps Kriya, tears of frustration threatening to spill.

"It doesn't stop, Kriya, it never does. All you can do is change yourself."

"Of course," Kriya mutters bitterly, getting ready to leave.

Simmi grabs her elbow, stopping her. "I'm not talking about your looks or your personality. I'm talking about your outlook towards this whole situation. You're a strong girl, I can see that. And I think that  _insecure_ is the last thing that you want to be."

Simmi lets go of Kriya's arm, turning around to walk away, but before she can, Kriya asks her, "How did you know I was in here?"

"I heard music, and then I kind of just put two and two together. By the way, you might want to avoid whatever teacher's class you just missed."

"Oh shit!" Simmi chuckles at the younger girl before walking away.

Meanwhile, Taani and Saara are walking down the hallway. "I can't believe Sharon di actually said that to Kriya!" exclaims Saara.

"I can," Taani says venomously. Saara gives her a look, causing her to continue, "Sorry, but what she said really hurt di. I know she's going to try and say some crap like 'it doesn't bother me,' but I know she's lying. Sharon really put a knife in those words. Oh god, what I wouldn't give to just take that knife out and -"

Taani doesn't get to finish her sentence due to Saara cutting her by saying, "Do  _not_  finish that sentence."

"You don't even know what I was going to say."

" _Yes_ , I do! Why? Because I'm your best friend, and I know exactly how your brain works."

"Of course you do. Why? Because my brain works like every other human brain." Saara gives her the look again, and Taani grumbles, "Sorry."

"Vengeance is not the answer Taani. Now, tell your inner Jhansi ki Rani to calm down! I know you're pissed at di, but the most important thing for us to do right now is -"

"Find di," Taani finishes her friend's sentence.

"Exactly! Now, where could she be?"

"Rehearsal hall, duh!"

"Oh, right!" says Saara, suddenly feeling like an idiot. The two girls race over to the rehearsal hall, only to find Kriya leaving.

"Kriya!" Kriya turns around, having heard Saara's voice, and forces a smile. She walks over to her friends and says, "Hey guys. Sorry I wasn't in class. I'll see you around okay?" And with that, she walks away from her friends, before they could even think about giving her the third degree.

"Di!" Taani calls after her, but Kriya doesn't even look back. Taani looks at Saara and says, "You know, if Sharon wasn't your cousin, I would've killed her by now."

"I know honey," says Saara, putting her arm around her friend.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If anyone wants to know the name of the song Kriya danced to, then it's called Yaadein Yaad Aati Hein, from the movie Yaadein and this song is pretty, I hope I did justice to it because this was the first dance sequence I ever wrote.
> 
> Musical Inspiration: 24/7 by Big Time Rush and Sticks + Stones by Nicola Roberts


	14. Oh Nilesh and Vicky

"What the hell guys?" Kriya shouts when her best-friends drag her into her room and lock the door behind them.

"Exactly, what the hell?" demands Taani. "You've been avoiding us all day!"

"I've been busy," stammers Kriya.

"Busy my foot," says Saara, making Kriya sit down on her bed, back against her headboard, as she and Taani sit in front of her. "Talk to us Kriya."

Kriya brings her knees to her chest and sighs. "Growing up, I've always been called a misfit, an improper girl, and many many other things. I've never let what strangers or even close relatives say get to me. But what Sharon said reminded me of my dad. When your own father refuses to accept you for who you are, it can do things to your self-esteem. And what's worse is that he left  _because of me_! My dad wanted a daughter, not a daughter who acted like a son. My mom had to suffer so much because of that."

"Bullshit!" Saara cuts in, baffled as to why her best-friend would even think this way. "Listen to me, your dad was a douchebag who couldn't handle his responsibilities. He did not leave because of you."

"And let's not forget that he also a loser! Maasi was practically raising you and bhai herself even  _when_  he was there," Taani points out to her cousin, a firm look in her eyes. "She did not suffer because of you! Do you hear me?"

Kriya keeps her head down, and that's when it hits Taani.

"This isn't just about your dad, is it?"

Kriya looks up at her and whispers, "No."

"Then what is it about, Kriya?"

"It's about my stupid emotions okay! It's about me being insecure, and jealous, and crying like the entire world's pain has just shoved itself into my heart. All my life, I've been compared to the two of you. And look, I do not blame either of you. You don't flaunt your natural beauty and ability to make guys fall head over heels for you in my face. You probably don't even have any idea about any of this but -"

"- because you don't share any of this with us you dumbass!" both Taani and Saara yell at once, making Kriya sigh, letting out a snort.

Taani takes her sister's right hand in her own. "Listen to me and listen to me well Kriya Shekhawat; you are this fierce and confident girl - no. You are this fierce and confident  _woman_ that I have always admired. You are beautiful, inside and out! But you're just not confident that you're beautiful. We all see how beautiful you are, and I think it's high time you realize it too."

"Hate to break it you but... I'm a jeans and t-shirt girl," says Kriya, clearly refusing to believe whatever comes out of the mouths of these two women sitting in front of her. "I highly doubt that that will ever qualify as beautiful."

Saara then grabs a hold of Kriya's other hand. "Well, then you should know that beauty is all about feeling comfortable in your own skin. Add a little confidence, and you're good to go. And we're going to show it you and my di's party."

"It all started with her questioning you and your looks, right?" asks Taani. Kriya nods as Taani helps her get up. "Come on! We are going to prove the Wicked Vampire Queen wrong." She then sheepishly looks at Saara and says, "Sorry."

Saara looks at Kriya, then turns back to Taani and cheekily says, "I'll let it slide just this once."

Taani starts looking through the closet, and finds exactly what she's looking for. She pulls out the top she's found, and holds it up to give Kriya and Saara a proper view of it. "You are going to wear this," Taani rummages around for a couple other things before turning back around, "with some jeans and flats."

"I'm going to wear  _that_ for a party?" Kriya looks at her cousin as if she's lost her mind.

"Yes," Saara chimes in, moving to stand beside Taani, "because it's what  _you_ are comfortable in. You hate wearing dresses and heels."

Kriya thinks for a moment and grabs the top from Taani. She finds a pair of jeans, and then heads into the bathroom. A couple minutes later, Kriya emerges from the bathroom, and looks at her reflection in the mirror. She then turns back to her friends and asks, "Is it weird that I feel like a princess in these clothes?"

Taani and Saara look at each other and giggle. "Absolutely not!" Saara assures her. "Now I'm going to leave because I have to get ready for the party myself. Arjun's gonna' come pick you guys up 'kay?"

"Okay," the cousins say at once, as their best-friend leaves.

Meanwhile, at the Rai Prakash House, Vrushika gently opens the door to Sharon's bedroom and asks, "Di, are you ready? It's almost time for the party."

Sharon, who had been crying nonstop ever since she ditched her last couple classes to come home, looks up at her cousin and stutters, "N- no. I'll go get ready right now."

"Di," Vrushika says softly, giving her cousin a kind smile, "there's some who wants to see you."

Vrushika gestures for the person to come in, and Sharon, who had been sitting on the floor, quickly gets up. "Simmi," she whispers, and the girl in question gives her a slight smile.

"I'll leave you guys to talk," says Vrushika, closing the door behind her as she leaves.

Simmi comes face to face with Sharon and says, "Listen Shar, I am so sorry! It's your birthday and -"

Sharon cuts her friend off. "Don't! Please, don't apologize. You have every right to be mad at me. I was way out line with what I said to you today. Listen Simmi, I'm not sure if I'll ever be that old Sharon Rai Prakash that I was. Honestly, I just don't think I have it in me to become that sweet little girl again. I don't know what to do, or who to believe... my dad convinced me of one thing, but I'm not sure if he was right. I just need time, okay? But if I ever do that again, you know, go out of my way to mean to someone, please just give me a reality check. Slaps are permitted."

Simmi takes in what her friend has said, and sighs. "Sharon, you need time, and I'll give it to you. But how much time?"

"Please Simmi, just... please!" Simmi closes her eyes, and then opens them back up.

"Fine. Now come on, let's get you ready birthday girl!"

* * *

People start to show up at around seven. Everyone greets Sharon, says happy birthday, and goes on to enjoy themselves.

"Sharon, the party's great!" exclaims Simmi.

"Thanks, Simmi," says Sharon. "I was afraid people wouldn't be too into it because I don't have any alcohol here. I'm not trying to be a party pooper, I just want people hurting themselves, or anything serious happening. And I certainly don't want drunk drivers."

"I get it, Shar. But you think Vicky and Nil got the memo?"

"Oh shit! I completely forgot about that. You don't think they'll do anything stupid right?"

"They're adults Sharon, I'm sure they won't do anything too stupid."

Elsewhere, at the punch table, Vicky and Nilesh are doing something stupid.

"Okay, so we're going to switch all these non-alcoholic drinks, with alcoholic drinks," Vicky explains to his best friend.

"But, won't Sharon get mad at us?"

"Trust me Nil, she'll be thanking us after she sees how people are enjoying themselves."

"This is going to be an interesting party..."

"Yes it is."

Meanwhile, Arjun's car arrives at the Rai Prakash house. Saara, who was waiting for her best-friends to come, immediately tackles them when they get out of her brother's car.

"I will never understand how you girls find squeezing each other to death fun," remarks Arjun. All three girls give him identical 'oh just shut up' looks.

Rey and Aashi's cars arrive right after. Nisha runs up to the other girls and hugs them. She then notices Kriya's attire and exclaims, "Whoa, Kri! You look amazing."

"Thanks," gushes Kriya, her cheeks turning pink.

Rey walks up to the girls and focuses his attention on Kriya.

"Baatcutter," he says smugly.

"You know, until I find a witty nickname for you, I won't talk to you," declares Kriya. She then quickly corrects herself by saying, "Starting now!" when she sees the smirk on Rey's face.

Nisha on the other hand, looks back and forth from her friend to her cousin, quite amused by their interaction.

"What's with that look?" she hears Arjun whisper in her ear, sending shivers up her spine for some odd reason.

She bites her lip and gulps. "What look?" she whispers back, looking up at him, only slightly concerned by how close his face was.

"Your Cupid look. Or as I like to call it, the 'something bad is going to happen' look."

Nisha smacks his chest with the back of her hand and turns back to her friends, causing Arjun to chuckle.

"Feisty."

The gang walks to the entrance of the Rai Prakash house, only to be greeted by Sharon. Rey is the first person to hug her.

"Happy birthday!" he exclaims, twirling her around.

"Thanks, Rey," says Sharon, smiling.

"Happy birthday," says Neha, offering Sharon a kind smile, as Aashi hands her a present. The two girls head to the party area, with Bharat following them.

"Thank you," whispers Sharon, even though they probably didn't hear her.

"Happy birthday Sharon!" says Swayam, with more enthusiasm than the others.

"Thanks Swayam!" exclaims Sharon, her face lighting up.

"Happy birthday Sharon di!" shouts Nisha, engulfing the older girl in a hug.

"Aw, thanks Nishu."

Soon, only Kriya and Taani are left. Taani gives her fake smile, as Kriya only glances at her. Before the two girls are out of earshot, Sharon yells, "Hey, Kripa!" Kriya, as well as Taani, turn back to look at Sharon. "You clean up nice."

The sisters look at each other strangely, and then turn around.

"Did she compliment me, or insult me?"

"A little bit of both actually. I think it's her way of apologizing to you."

"What kind of logic is that?"

"Sharon logic?" The two girls look at each other and burst out laughing. They then go to find their friends.

* * *

Dance music blasts from the speakers, and everyone goes crazy. Except for Vrushika Rai Prakash that is. She's never been a party person, and she feels bad since it's her cousin's birthday party. But dancing like a maniac with sweaty strangers is just not her thing. She was planning on staying by punch table, hiding out.

That is until she heard a voice say, "You look different." She turns around to see that the owner of the voice is none other than Swayam Shekhawat.

Vrushika chuckles. "Not by choice I can assure you!"

"I'm surprised that Sharon didn't throw a fit about your sneakers," he says, gesturing to her shoes.

"Oh, believe me, she did! I just don't get it! We're out here where there's grass, and if I wear heels, they'll dig into the grass, and the whole thing will just be a pain in the ass."

"That's what I was trying to explain to Taani! Finally, someone with common sense."

Vrushika giggles. "So, why exactly are you here?"

"I'm not really a party person. What about you?"

"Same as you; not really a party person." The two start chatting, somehow hearing each other over the music.

Elsewhere, everyone else is dancing up a storm.

That is until Saara sees Karan. "What the hell is he doing here?" Taani and Kriya look to where she is, and their eyes go wide.

"Did your cousin invite him?" asks a bewildered Taani.

Saara rolls her eyes. "She invited half the city. And now I have to spend my time avoiding my ex-boyfriend. Could my life get any worse?"

"Uh, Saara... you might not want to see this but... Karan is with someone," says Kriya, pointing to where Karan is.

Saara turns back to where her ex-boyfriend is and groans. "Asked and answered." She looks at him again, this time surrounded by even more girls, and yells, "Look at him! He's totally flirting. The eyebrow wiggle, the sparkly eyes, the playful smirk... I practically invented that!"

"Then how about you use it," says Kriya, a sly smirk appearing on her face.

"I see where you're going with this," says Saara, the same smirk now appearing on her face.

Taani looks at her two best-friends and sighs. "You guys..." she begins, but soon chucks it. "Ah, fuck it!" She narrows her eyes at Saara like a mother would. "Flirt with nice, single guys only. No sleazebags, or guys who are taken. That's not going to end well, trust me."

"Okay, mom!" groans Saara, before walking off.

"So, do you think this will blow up in her face?" Taani asks Kriya once their friend is out of earshot.

"Probably, but she's Saara, she'll be fine. Now come on, let's get something to drink!"

The two girls head to the punch table. Kriya innocently chugs a glass of punch before her cousin could stop her, and then chugs another.

And another.

And another.

And another.

Taani slaps her forehead.  _This is a disaster_ , she thinks.

And only gets worse when her sister makes her drink a glass of punch as well.  _Shit_ , thinks Taani,  _I can't stop myself after one drink!_

You'd think that after all these years, she would've developed a better tolerance for alcohol but no. Still can't stop herself after one drink, still gets drunk after - shit, this was her seventh drink.

Once both sisters are drunk out of their minds, a giggling Kriya asks, "Okay, what is in this punch?"

"Um... a  _lot_  of vodka!" exclaims Taani, also giggling.

"Are you guys okay?" Nisha asks her friends as she walks over to them.

"We're great! Now come on Taani, let's go!"

As Nisha watches her two friends go, she says to herself, "Oh yeah, they're drunk." Then she remembers what Sharon told her and wonders, "But how?" She then goes over to the punch bowl, and immediately realizes that it's alcohol. "Of course. Vicky and Nilesh." Nisha leaves the punch table and marches around, looking for Vicky and Nilesh.

Until she bumps into Arjun that is.

"Whoa there!" exclaims Arjun.

"Sorry," mumbles Nisha, walking away. Until Arjun grabs her wrist. "What do you want?"

Arjun lets go of her wrist and asks, "How are you not drunk?"

"Well, I for one, can handle my alcohol," Nisha says smugly. Arjun raises an eyebrow at her and she groans. "Okay that, and I didn't drink of any of it."

"I wish everyone else was smart enough to do that."

"Yeah. From the looks of it, we're only ones here who are sober."'

"So, what should we do while our friends are drunk off their asses?"

"Let's go see what they're up to so we can tell them everything the next day. And of course blackmail them in the future if necessary."

"Are you being serious right now, because I really can't tell with you."

Nisha rolls her eyes. "Yes, I'm being serious Arjun."

"You are a dangerous girl."

"Aw, thank you," gushes Nisha, actually taking that as a compliment. "I learn from the best! And if you think I'm dangerous now, then you should really see me when I'm drunk."

"No thank you," says Arjun, following her.

Meanwhile, Taani had strayed away from Kriya. "Di?" she asks, looking around. Well, more like spinning round and round. Once she stops, she says, "Wow, I'm dizzy. Why am I dizzy?" She walks around, stumbling every now and then, until she stops at a tree. She looks up and sees a family of birds, causing her eyes and her mouth to widen.

"Birdie!" she exclaims, jumping up and down. She starts flapping her arms up in the air. She then stands on top of a bench, not on the seat no no, but on top of the backrest, while screaming, "Wee! I'm a birdie!"

Suddenly, she loses her balance and begins to fall. "But I'm a birdie!" she exclaims in protest to gravity, while struggling to keep her balance.

Just then, a strong pair of arms puts his hands at her waist, while standing in front of her. "Of course you are."

He then helps her off the bench, but instead of having her stand, he takes her in his arms. "Come on, let's get you home."

Once Taani sees the face of her savior, she immediately shouts, "No! You're a meanie!"

"I'm a meanie?" asks the savior, raising an eyebrow in amusement.

"Oh shut up Aarav! And put me down!"

"No, I don't trust you." Taani crosses her arms over her chest and huffs in defeat.

Aarav chuckles, shaking his head. "Classic Taani."

While Taani was being taken care of by Aarav, Kriya was all alone in her world, just sitting in a tree. Guess alcohol doesn't affect her expert climbing skills.

"Hey, Baatcutter!" shouts Rey, from down on the ground, just as drunk as Kriya.

"Ugh, why do always have ruin my perfectly good mood and peace and quiet?" demands Kriya, taking a weak branch off the tree and throwing it at Rey.

Luckily, Rey ducks so the flying branch misses him. He then glares at Kriya and shouts, "Are you trying to kill me?!"

"Yeah, but it's not really working," says Kriya, as if it's the most normal response in the world.

"Well, just so you know, you're killing the poor tree, which hurts everything else in nature, which hurts Mother Nature."

"Aw, sorry tree," says Kriya, hugging the tree. She then looks down at Rey and yells, "Hey Singhania, I bet you can't climb up here!"

"I bet I can!"

"Prove it!" And with that, Rey starts climbing.

So, Taani was being taken care of by Aarav, and Kriya was sitting in a tree. Where's Saara you might ask? Why in her room of course! Just slightly drunk.

Saara flops onto her bed, and closes her eyes. When she opens them again though, she sees Karan towering over her. She quickly jumps up and demands, "What the hell, why are you here?!"

She shoves him away, and keeps shoving him away while shouting, "Get out of here!" But Karan stops her from doing so by holding onto her wrists.

"Let me go!" Karan simply stands there, continuing to hold her wrists, heightening Saara's anger. She pushes him against the wall with her wrists, and yells, "You're a jerk!"

"I'm the jerk?!" demands Karan, his voice booming throughout the room. "No, you're the jerk!"

"Me?!"

"Yes you! You say that you love me, and you're flirting with every single guy here."

"Oh really?" says Saara, wriggling her wrists out of his grip. "I've heard about the girls you date! Models, actresses, singers!" She turns around and walks towards her bed. "Don't be such a hypocrite."

They're silent for a moment, Saara and Karan, until Karan asks, "Did I mention the clown?"

Saara smiles and turns around. "You dated a clown?" she asks, as Karan walks over to her.

"Yeah, I did."

"Aw, that makes me feel better."

"See!" exclaims Karan, pulling her towards him. "I'm not  _that_  bad."

"No," whispers Saara, wrapping her arms around his neck and resting her head on his shoulder, "you're just the jerk who broke my heart."

Karan strokes her hair. "I know." He hugs her tighter and whispers, "I'm sorry."

Saara cups his face with one of her hands and says "I know." She uses her free hand to tug the collar of his shirt. She pulled so hard that they both landed on Saara's bed. They briefly look into each other's eyes, right before their lips meet.

Meanwhile, a very drunk Sharon was on a rampage. "I am going to kill them both!" she screams, fighting through crowds people to find her two idiots. Note to self, a drunk Sharon is much scarier than a sober Sharon. As she's rampaging, she stumbles upon none other than Shivam Dutta.

"Whoa there Superbitch!" he exclaims, as the girl falls into his arms.

Sharon looks up at the boy and squints. She then makes a face and says, "Ugh, it's you!"

"Wow, really feeling the love Sharon!"

"Shut up Monkeyface!" snaps Sharon, taking her hand and closing Shivam's mouth with her fingers.

Shivam slowly removes her claws from his face and says, "Well aren't you just  _full_ of compliments tonight?"

Sharon gives him a fake smile, and begins to walk away. Shivam grabs her arm and asks, "And where exactly do you think you're going?"

"To find Vicky and Nilesh," she says, as if it's the most obvious thing in the world.

"No you're not," says Shivam, in a slightly commanding voice.

"You're not the boss of me Dutta!" she shouts, crushing his toes with her heels.

Ignoring the pain, Shivam gently says, "Sharon, you're drunk. You need to sleep. Are you going to listen to me, or do I need to call Simmi?"

Sharon's eyes widen in panic, and she violently shakes her head. The only time Simmi can be really scary is when she goes into mama bear mode. Sharon lets Shivam drag her to her room without any more protests.

And where is the last of the Rai Prakash siblings? Why outside with Swayam of course! Except, she wasn't really drunk, and neither was Swayam. The two had decided to leave the party full of drunk people, and go take a walk.

"So, how much do you want to bet that Sharon di will kill Vicky and Nilesh tomorrow?" Vrushika asks Swayam as they're walking down the road.

"I will bet my entire life savings on the fact that she will destroy them," says Swayam, causing them both to burst out laughing.

"So, I guess you weren't exactly planning on spending the night entertaining the younger cousin of the love your life. Or your little sisters' new friend... whichever one works for you really."

"No, I was planning on spending the night entertaining my new friend," says Swayam, bumping his head against Vrushika's.

"We're friends?"

"Were you not aware of that fact until now?"

"Nope," Vrushika says awkwardly, sitting down on a bench. Swayam chuckles, and then realizes something.

He sits down beside Vrushika and asks, "Wait, how do you know that I'm in love with Sharon?"

Vrushika rolls her eyes. "The whole world knows you're in love with my cousin! Well, except for her." She then teasingly says, "Were you not aware of that until now?" Swayam gives her a look, and then bursts out laughing, which then causes Vrushika to burst out laughing as well.

Once they stop laughing, Vrushika says, "Okay look. I don't want to seem nosy or anything, but how- when... why did you fall in love with Sharon di?"

"Do you want me to answer in that specific order of how, when and why or..." Swayam says teasingly, causing Vrushika to smack him on the arm.

"I'm serious!" she says, giggling.

"Okay, okay!" Swayam says, throwing his arms in the air as a sign of surrendering.

"First day of school, ninth standard, was when I saw Sharon for the first time. It was impossible to miss her! Not only because she was just simply beautiful, but because everything about her seemed so magical- her voice, her laugh, her eyes. Even when she'd go out of her way to help people. But the one thing that made me really fall for her, was her smile. That moment when she smiled at me, it was... I don't think I'll ever experience something like that again. I fell for her, harder, each and every day. We became friends, good friends. But behind her smiling face, I could see how much pain she was really in, and all I've ever wanted to do is take that pain away. Even after she changed, and that smiling face was replaced with the death glare, I still see that pain! Except now, I see more of it."

"Wow," says Vrushika, after Swayam's done talking. "You really do love her!"

"Yeah, I do. And you know what, I even- never mind, it's silly."

"What's silly?" asks Vrushika, now curious.

"It's nothing."

"No, tell me!"

Swayam looks at the girl's pleading face and sighs. "Okay fine. I have this wish list, five things to do with Sharon before I die. Well, actually, it was five things to do with the love of my life before I die, but since Sharon is the love of my life..."

"Okay, so what are the five things?"

"Camping."

"Camping? You want to take my cousin  _camping_?" Swayam gives her a look, and Vrushika says, "Sorry, continue."

"A tea date kind of thing. I'm not really sure, but it's a date, and there's going to be tea." Vrushika didn't have the heart to tell Swayam that Sharon hates tea, so she just nods her head, gesturing for him to continue. "Cooking."

"Cooking?! Like, are you cooking for her? Because I highly recommend you cook for her!" exclaims Vrushika, fearing for Swayam's life.

Swayam gives her a strange look and continues. "Bike race."

"Sharon di doesn't know how to ride a bike," Vrushika says meekly, but seeing Swayam's sad face, she quickly adds, "but she can always learn!" Swayam's face lights up when he hears this. "Now, what's the final thing?"

Suddenly, it starts to rain, and Swayam laughs.

"Rain dance," he says, getting off the bench and spinning around.

"Are you crazy?! You'll get sick!"

"Who cares? Come on, dance with me!"

Vrushika's eyes widen. "No way!"

"Come on Vrushika, please! It'll be like helping me practice for when this happens with Sharon." Vrushika bites her lip and nervously looks at Swayam.

Meanwhile, Taani is throwing a fit inside Aarav's car. "Aarav please, it's raining! And I love dancing in the rain, please!" she pleads at the irritated driver.

"For the last time Taani, no!" Taani pouts like a child, and smirks mischievously. She reaches for the door handle, but the car door won't open.

"I locked it genius." Taani glares at him, and crosses her arms over her chest.

Once they reach her house, Aarav gets Taani out of the car, and takes her in his arms. He doesn't exactly trust her to stand by him as he helps her walk. He gently kicks the front door, and Smriti opens it.

"Well it's about damn time -" Smriti begins to shout, but stops when she's Aarav.

"Hi aunty," Aarav says awkwardly, setting Taani on the ground, and handing her over to Smriti.

"Maasi!" exclaims Taani, giving Smriti a hug.

"Is she drunk?" demands Smriti.

"Aunty look, I think someone spiked the drinks or something because Karan told me that it's a non-alcoholic party, and practically everyone there was drunk. Plus, Sharon di's not the type of person to serve alcohol at her party."

Smriti nods. "How did you find her?"

"I was just in the area."

Smriti raises her eyebrows, not believing him for a second, but goes along with it. "Thank you so much for bringing her home, but could you do me one more favor?"

"What is it?"

"Put her to sleep. You're kind of the only who can handle her when she's drunk."

Aarav smiles. "No problem aunty."

He takes Taani in his arms once again and says, "Come on Taani. Let's get you to bed."

"Let go of me you meanie!" she screams, as Aarav simply says, "No."

Once the two are in Taani and Kriya's room, Smriti says to herself, "If they have alcohol at their wedding, it will be a very interesting wedding." She closes the door behind her and chuckles, ignoring Taani's dramatic shrieks of "help I'm being held hostage by a weirdo!"

Aarav puts Taani down on what he assumes is her bed, since her teddy bear and favorite pillow are on it.

"Alright, time to go to bed."

"No!"

Aarav raises an eyebrow. "No?"

"No," repeats Taani, a smug smile on her face.

Aarav then takes Taani's teddy bear and asks, "Not even for her royal highness, Queen Penelope of Asgard, the Third? You know she can't sleep without you." He puts Queen Penelope in front of his face and changing his voice. "The big fat meanie's right Princess Taani, I need you!" Taani looks at the teddy bear, and then grabs her. She hugs her to her chest, and gets into a sleeping position.

Aarav smiles, and is about to leave when Taani grabs his wrist. Aarav looks at her, and gets down on his knees.

"Queen Penelope may need me, but I need you. Please don't leave." Aarav frees his hand from Taani's grip and looks at her face. He sighs and gets in bed beside her. He cups her cheek and softly says, "I know you hate me for what I'm doing, but I'm doing it for you, I promise."

"But I miss you," says Taani, tears threatening to fall from her eyes.

"I know," says Aarav, his voice barely above a whisper. "But I'm trying to protect you. All I've ever done is ruin your life Taani, not anymore."

"You're an idiot," Taani says, her eyes starting to close.

"I know, but I have to do this. And it's hard for me too." Aarav checks to make sure Taani's asleep before he whispers, "It's especially hard for me because I think I might just be falling in love with you." He kisses her forehead, and tries to remove his arm from underneath Taani's head, but fails to do so. Soon, he too, falls asleep.

* * *

Once Rey was finally sitting beside Kriya on the tree, he sees her looking at something and asks, "What are you looking at?"

Kriya points to where she's looking. "Look at the lights."

"What about the lights?" asks a confused Rey.

"Green, yellow, red, then green again. They're so pretty!"

Rey looks at her as if she's grown another head. "That's really stupid."

Kriya turns to face him, and glares.

"You're stupid!" she shouts, shoving him, causing him to fall off of the tree. Luckily, Rey had grabbed one of the lower branches in his drunken state, before dropping on the ground.

"You could've killed me!" he shouts up at Kriya.

"My bad!" shouts Kriya, continuing to look at the traffic lights. Rey glares up at her, and starts to shake the tree, causing Kriya to fall as well.

Except Kriya had fallen right on top of Rey.

"Ow," groans Rey. "Get off!"

Kriya quickly gets off of Rey's back, and he slowly sits up. She then crosses her arms over her chest and snaps, "Serves you right!"

Soon, Kriya starts to shiver because of the rain. Rey notices this, and hands her his leather jacket.

"Well, aren't you a gentlemen," Kriya says sarcastically. "I don't need it."

"You're freezing moron," drawls Rey, putting the jacket around her shoulders.

They sit in silence for a while. Then Rey asks, "Why do hate me so much?"

Kriya gives Rey a strange look and softly says, "I don't know." She sighs as she looks closely at Rey. "Maybe it's the fact that you think that you're all that. You know, you're cocky, you're arrogant, you're full of yourself, and... oh, you're a total flirt!"

"Sounds to me like you're jealous," Rey says teasingly, coming really close to Kriya.

"See, there you go again! And you do that weird thing with your eyes. They get all sparkly and twinkle like stars, and they look really pretty. Oh, and your smile! It's so annoying, and cocky, and it just makes me want to smack you really hard!"

"Please don't," says Rey, slightly scared.

He then says, "And you're not a bottle of sunshine either you know."

"Excuse me?"

"You do that scary thing with your eyes, where you glare and narrow your eyebrows, and it gives me nightmares like all the time."

Kriya's eyes go as wide as saucers. "You think my eyes are scary?"

Rey stares innocently into her eyes. "Well, not right now. Right now they look different. I like it."

"And your smile isn't making me want to smack you. You should smile like this more often."

"Yeah," Rey breathes out, leaning towards her. Kriya slowly close her eyes as she feels Rey's lips touch hers. She doesn't stop him, and he doesn't pull away. Kriya lets her fingers run through his hair, as Rey grabs hip and brings her closer to him, causing her to practically sit on his lap. And in that moment, they weren't two people who despised each other, or wanted to kill each other. They were just Rey and Kriya, and that's all that mattered.

* * *

"Sharon, I'm serious right now, go to bed!" Shivam shouts for the hundredth time. Sharon stops jumping on her bed and starts to whimper. She grabs a pillow and hits Shivam with it.

"You stupid Monkey Face, you yelled at me!"

"I shouted, there's a difference," says Shivam, as Sharon continues to hit him with her pillows.

"That's it!" he growls, taking the pillow from Sharon and holding both arms behind her back.

"That hurts!" whines Sharon.

"I don't care. Now tell me what I can do to make you go to sleep."

Sharon thinks for a moment and smirks. "Tell me a story."

"Excuse me?" Shivam asks, as if Sharon had asked him to strip for her.

"A story. You know, once upon a time, and they all lived happily ever after, the end... that sort of crap."

Shivam groans and lets go Sharon's arms. "Fine, I'll tell you a story. But you have to lie down, and be quiet." Sharon does as she's told, as Shivam goes and grabs a chair. Once Shivam sits down on the chair, Sharon groans. "What?"

"I have to throw out my favorite chair tomorrow."

"Why?"

"Because your butt touched it you butthead!" exclaims Sharon, as if it's the most obvious thing in the world.

Shivam closes his eyes, and takes a deep breath, reminding himself that going to jail for murder is the last thing he wants to do right now. "Okay, so once upon a time -" begins Shivam, but gets cut off by Sharon who shouts "Boring!"

That was the last straw.

"You want a story, Rai Prakash, I'll give you a story! Once upon a time, there was a Superbitch named Sharon Rai Prakash. One night, she had sex with someone. The next day, that someone got expelled from because of her. The. Fucking. End!"

Shivam gets up with such force that the chair falls over. Shivam puts it back where he found it, and opens the door to leave.

But something stops him.

The sound of Sharon crying.

He sighs, and walks back to her bed. He gets on his knees and awkwardly says, "Hey, is the great Sharon Rai Prakash crying?" That makes Sharon cry even harder. "Okay, look, I'm sorry."

"Don't say sorry! Why do people keep apologizing to me when it's all my fault?!"

"I don't know. But hey, at least you threw a great party right?" Sharon stops crying. "How about you go to sleep now Sharon?"

"Okay," whispers Sharon.

Shivam takes her shoes off, and covers her up with a blanket. He slightly smiles at Sharon, before deciding to write her a note. Once he's done, he leaves the note on her desk, right in front of her teddy bear. He then softly closes the door behind him as he leaves.

Meanwhile, Swayam is still trying to get Vrushika to dance with him. "Come on, please!"

"No!" says Vrushika, who is currently standing under a tree, completely dry.

"Ah fuck it!" says Swayam, grabbing her by the wrist and pulling her towards him.

Vrushika closes her eyes as the cold rain completely soaks her. She nervously opens her eyes. "See, was that so bad?" asks Swayam.

She gives him a sheepish smile. "No." He twirls her around, causing her to laugh.

"Hey, you don't think your sisters are drunk or something right?" asks Vrushika, as she and Swayam slowly begin to sway.

"No way! My sisters are way too smart to do something stupid like that."

"Ah... I was just asking because my sister  _is_ stupid enough to do something like that." This causes Swayam to laugh.

"So, Sharon won't kill me because I'm keeping you out until midnight or anything right?" Swayam asks nervously.

Vrushika chuckles. "No, I think you're safe lover boy."

While Vrushika was dancing with a gentleman, Nisha was dealing with an idiot.

"I'm telling you Arjun, Saara and Vrushika are both in their rooms! Where else could they be?"

"I don't know, I'm just worried!"

"Relax! They're big girls."

"I suppose you're right..." begins Arjun, but he begins to trail off when he sees something he never thought he'd see.

"What the heck?!" Nisha turns to where he's looking, and her jaw drops.

"Is that Kriya?!  _Kissing my cousin_?!"

"I think so," says Arjun, still in shock.

"Wow. I knew I saw chemistry between them, but I didn't think they'd be so quick with each other."

Arjun turns to her and immediately says, "No! You are not going to play Cupid for them."

"Why not?"

"Because it's best to just let things work out for themselves."

"But sometimes, people need a little push."

"Are we really going to argue about this right now?"

"Yes!" Arjun starts to walk away from her, with her walking after him shouting, "Don't walk away from me when I'm talking to you Juno!"

That my friends, was Sharon Rai Prakash's nineteenth birthday party. So the moral of the story here is, always double check the punch bowl. Especially if you have friends like Nilesh and Vicky.

Oh Nilesh and Vicky...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Musical Inspiration: She Will Be Loved by Maroon 5 and Kar Gayi Chull from Kapoor & Sons


	15. Hangover

When Aarav opens his eyes the next morning, he's almost shocked to see where he is. And then he remembers the events of last night.

Drunk Taani?

Check!

Saving drunk Taani, and then bringing her home?

Check!

Trying to get her to sleep?

Check!

Spilling his guts to drunk Taani, and then falling asleep beside her?

Check!

Aarav sits up on the bed and looks at Taani. The sight of her brings a smile to his face. But the smile soon disappears when he realizes how weird it feels to stare at his best-friend while she's asleep.

"Great, I'm turning into Edward Cullen."

Suddenly, he feels an arm around his waist. He looks over to Taani and sees that she has turned to face him. He slowly removes her arm from around his waist, realizing that she might wake up soon, and gets up. He opens up the window to her room and climbs down.

Meanwhile, Taani slowly wakes up due to the headache that just wouldn't let her sleep. She gets up, and looks around. "How did I get here?"

* * *

Reyaansh Singhania never thought that he'd wake up with his head leaning against a tree trunk. Nor did he ever think that Kriya Shekhawat's head would be resting on his chest.

Where are the flying pigs?

He gently nudges the sleeping girl awake and Kriya, being a light sleeper, immediately awakens. She sits up and rubs her eyes. When she sees Rey, she lets out a little yelp.

"Not so loud Baatcutter," groans Rey, his head pounding.

"Sorry," Kriya says meekly, and if Rey's head didn't hurt so much, he definitely would've taken a picture of the not-so Junior Rani Lakshmi Bai who only comes out once in a blue moon. "How did we even get here?"

"I don't know. Do you remember anything that happened last night?"

As if on cue, Kriya remembers what happened. Her throwing tree branches at Rey... her falling on top of Rey... her kissing Rey... but before she could stop herself, Kriya blurts out "No!" Rey looks a little taken aback by the sudden hostility in her voice. Kriya quickly corrects herself by saying, "Um, no not really. You?"

Suddenly, Rey gets flashes of last night. Yelling at Kriya... talking to Kriya... kissing Kriya... but since Kriya clearly doesn't remember any of that happening, Rey decides to lie.

"Nope."

"Okay."

After a moment of awkward silence, Kriya clears her throat and decides to speak up. "I think I remember something. I think I threw a tree branch at you."

"No, you threw  _multiple_  tree branches at me! Seriously, you were like freaking Zeus with his thunderbolts!"

Kriya giggles. "Actually, I think they're lightning bolts."

Rey shrugs. "Same thing."

Kriya chuckles. "Not really."

"Are you seriously going to compare the similarities and differences between thunderbolts and lightning bolts with me? Especially while our brain cells are literally going 'pop'?" asks Rey, raising an eyebrow. Kriya blushes, punching him on the shoulder. "Ouch."

"Damn you Reyaansh Singhania," Kriya mutters when she starts blushing again. She then gets up, and holds her hand out for Rey. Rey takes it, and gets up.

"So, I guess I'll see you on Monday," says Kriya, before she starts to walk away.

Rey grabs her wrist and asks, "Do you seriously think that I'm going to let you walk home alone from here? I'm coming with you."

"You don't have to do that," Kriya begins to protest, but Rey shuts her up.

"I  _want_ to do that." He starts to walk ahead, but seeing that Kriya was still standing in her original spot, he asks, "You coming?"

Kriya breaks out of her trance. "Yeah. Who else is going to make sure that you don't get lost Singhania?" Rey lightly shoves her, and she shoves him back.

* * *

Sharon's POV

Nilesh Kotian and Vickramjeet Kalsi are going to die today. They will die a very painful death. I will bury them in a coal mine. I will scatter their ashes over the Bermuda Triangle. Right after my head stops hurting like a  _bitch_.

I get out of bed like a zombie, and walk over to my desk to get my phone. That's when I notice a note. I pick it up, and begin to read it.

"Hey Superbitch!" So it's a note from Shivam... I shake my head, and continue reading. "Thought I'd give some helpful tips for the future." I snort. Shivam Dutta giving me helpful tips? Especially after what I did to him? No. Freaking. Way.

"Tip #1, always check the punch bowl before guests arrive, especially when Vicky and Nilesh are involved."

No shit Sherlock.

"Tip #2, always make sure you know what you're drinking."

Thanks dad.

"Tip #3, if you ever get drunk again, whether it's on purpose or by accident, I swear to god I'm going to lock you up in your room, and I won't let you out until I know you're asleep."

How very harsh and un-Shivam like... wonder what I did...

"Tip #4, best way to get over a hangover is to re-hydrate. Water, fruits... All good things to cure that killer hangover you probably have."

There's the helpful tip!

"See you in a couple days, Superbitch!"

No thank you Shirritating!

I fold the note, and walk over to my closet. I take out an old box, and open it up. It's my memory box. A box filled with memories of the pathetic little weakling that I used to be. I put the note inside the box, and then put the box away.

I walk out of my room, and over to Saara's.

* * *

Taani walks towards the dining table where her aunt is currently sitting, drinking her coffee and reading a newspaper. She wants to comment on how un-Smriti-like her aunt is being, but can't find the willpower to.

"Good morning Taanu!"

"Sh, not so loud!" hisses Taani, gripping her head as she sits down. "Ugh, my head hurts!" She slams her face down on the table. "Everything hurts." Although that last sentence was inaudible, Smriti understood what her niece was saying.

She gets up, goes into the kitchen, and places a glass of lemon water in front of her. Taani brings her head up at the sound, and sees her aunt gesturing for her drink the lemon water. She drinks the lemon water and then smiles at her aunt. "Thank you."

"No problem bacha," Smriti says affectionately, ruffling Taani's hair a little. Taani giggles, but then bites her lower lip she realizes something.

"Maasi I'm so sorry -"

"Relax Taanu, it happens. Besides, Aarav explained that the drinks were spiked." Taani breathes a sigh of relief, and then furrows her eyebrows in confusion.

"Wait, when was Aarav here?"

"He was the one who brought you home last night. And last I checked, he was sleeping right next to you."

"He used the window," mutters Taani.

"What?"

"Nothing," Taani says quickly. "I just realized that I have a bunch of stuff to do right now so I'm just going to..." Taani doesn't even finish her sentence. She awkwardly trails off, and heads to her room.

Kriya's POV

"Well, this is me," I say awkwardly, as we stop in front of my house.

"Right," says Rey, shoving his hands into his pockets.

We stand together in silence for a moment, until I say, "So, I'm just going to go."

"Yeah, you do that." Universeji, could we be any more awkward?

I walk over to the door, and am about to ring the doorbell, when Rey says, "You do realize that you're wearing my jacket, right?" I turn around to face Rey, and then look at my arms. Sure enough, I'm wearing Rey's blue leather jacket. How have I not noticed it up until now?

"Why didn't you tell me?" I ask him, a little embarrassed.

Rey shrugs. "I wanted to see how long it would take you to figure it out for yourself."

"You're crazy," I say, as I start to take the jacket off.

"I prefer spontaneous. Oh, and keep the jacket."

"What?"

"Keep the jacket. It looks nice on you."

"Thanks," I say, tugging the jacket so it hugs tighter around my body. It feels surprisingly comfortable.

Rey smiles, not smirks I note, and says, "See you around Baatcutter." I watch him as he goes, and realize that he called me Baatcutter at least five times today, and I did nothing to stop him.

I shake my head, and turn around to ring the doorbell.

Time to face Rani Lakshimibai herself - aka, my mother.

* * *

Saara squints as the sun hits her face. She tries to turn around, but couldn't. Why? Because of the protective arm around her waist. Saara's eyes immediately widen in panic, and she sits up. She turns her head, and breathes a sigh of relief when she sees that it's only Karan. She then pushes the sleeping boy off of her bed with all her might.

Karan falls off the bed with a thud. He immediately awakens, and gets up.

"That hurt!"

"I don't care! What the hell are you doing here?!"

Karan jumps on the bed, and sits next to Saara. "How should I know?! I was drunk, remember?"

"Yeah, well so was I!" Saara shoves him off the bed again.

"Stop doing that," groans Karan, unable to find the energy to get up again.

"Well then stop being an ass," hisses Saara, getting off the bed, and sitting next to him on the floor. "And what exactly happened last night?"

"Seriously?" asks Karan, raising an eyebrow. "We woke up in bed together, naked, and last night, we were drunk out of our minds. What do you think happened?"

Saara's face heats up. "Mean!"

"Stupid!"

Saara grabs him by the shoulders, and pins him to the floor. "Did you just call me stupid?!"

"Are stupid  _and_  deaf?"

She smacks his bare chest and shouts, "Take that back!"

"Make me," he challenges. Saara then does the unthinkable.

She kisses her ex-boyfriend.

Karan's too shocked to do anything but kiss her back. Saara slowly moves her hands from his chest to his neck, and then up to his hair. She helps him sit up, and then pulls away from the kiss. They breathe heavily, not looking away from each other's eyes.

"You cheated," whispers Karan, smiling. Saara smacks his chest again, but not as aggressively.

A knock on the door brings them back to reality. Their heads immediately snap towards the door.

"Saara, are you in there?" they hear Sharon ask.

"Shit!" Saara and Karan mutter simultaneously, their eyes widening. They get up, and begin to panic.

"Uh, yeah. Just give me a minute di!" shouts Saara, as Karan quickly puts his clothes back on. He then grabs his shoes, and is about to go out the window... but not before he walks back over to Saara and kisses her again.

"Saara!" they hear Sharon yell, and then they pull away from each other. Since Saara's room is on the first floor, she has a thing with rooms on top floors, Karan easily jumps out the window and runs for the hills - literally.

Saara gets under her covers and says, "Come in di!"

Sharon comes into the room and cheerfully exclaims, "Good morning! Have you seen Vrushika anywhere?"

"No, not since last night. But I think that I saw her leave the party."

"Okay, thanks. Come down for breakfast in a bit."

"Sure di."

Sharon closes the door behind her, and as soon as she's gone, Saara breathes a sigh of relief. She then asks herself, "What just happened?"

* * *

"You look happy," Nisha remarks, looking up from her book, only to find her brother practically skipping into the house, whistling and smiling.

"What?" says a very confused Rey, who was clearly in his own world.

Nisha shakes her head. "So, where have you been?"

"Oh, you know, around."

Nisha rolls her eyes. "Around where?"

"Oh you know... around."

"You're a terrible liar."

"Well you're not exactly easy to lie to!"

"I'm sorry, how are you the older sibling?"

"I was born first?" says Rey, making his statement sound like a question.

"You did not just make that sound like a question," groans Nisha.

"Okay, ignoring you. Where's Aashi?"

"Probably still with Bharat. They left the party early."

"She was with Bharat ALL NIGHT?! And she's  _still_ not back yet?!"

"Please don't go into protective brother mode," says Nisha, cringing. "Besides, Aashi di is a big girl, and she'd probably kick your ass for trying to play protective big brother."

"You're really annoying, you know that right?"

"Yes, but you love me anyway," says Nisha, a syrupy smile on her face.

"I tolerate you." Nisha frowns, and throws one of the pillows from the couch at him. "You make it really hard," says Rey, not fazed by the pillow hitting him on the shoulder. Nisha throws another pillow, and this time it hits his face.

"Oh, and by the way, I'm not going to be home tonight," Nisha informs him.

"Why?"

"Because it's sleepover night at Taani and Kriya's place. I'm talking food and a Disney movie marathon!"

"Did you just say Taani and  _Kriya's_  place?" asks Rey, strangely intrigued by this news.

"Yeah, why?" Nisha asks mischievously, noticing how he said Kriya's name.

"Oh, no reason. It's just that Swayam and I are supposed to hang out tonight. Maybe I'll give you a ride."

"Okay, one, that is a reason. And two, you were going to have to give me a ride anyway."

"You're a brat," says Rey, heading up to his room.

"Love you too!"

* * *

Kriya's POV

"Where the  _hell_ have you been?" my mom demands, right after she opens the door.

I awkwardly step into the house and say, "I woke up leaning against a tree."

Not a total lie.

"Well, go drink that lemon water I left for you on the table, and then go change out of those clothes. And where did you get that jacket?"

"It was a... present."

Again, not a total lie.

"From who?"

"From... Nisha!"

Rey's her cousin, so technically, I'm not lying... right?

I drink the water, and go into my room, only to find Taani lying on her bed.

"Taanu?" I ask, sitting down.

"Yeah?" she says softly. I can tell that she's been crying. She's been doing a lot of that lately. And I know that she hates herself for it.

I turn her so she's lying down on her back, and see that her eyes are red. "What happened?"

She sits up. "Aarav happened."

I frown. "What did he do?" I really wanted to ask, "How should I kill him, and where should he be buried?" but I decided that a simple, "What did he do?" would suffice. For now.

"Nothing, I'm just making a big deal out of absolutely nothing."

"Taani," I say, in my 'tell me the truth before I have to get it out of you' voice.

Taani sighs. "He brought me home last night, and he stayed with me, but the minute he realized that I was going to wake up soon, he decided to go out the freaking window."

I am so writing 'Here lies Aarav Saxena: the worst jerk of a best friend you'll ever meet' on his headstone.

"Taani, look at me. You need to stop doing this to yourself. Aarav is your best-friend and you miss him, I know that. But when was the last you did something for yourself? When was the last time you wrote a song? Or even just sang for the fun of it?" Taani stays silent. "You need to start living your life again. Don't let it stop just because of Aarav!"

Taani closes her eyes, and then opens them up once again. "You're right. I do need to start living my life again. But I don't know when exactly that's going to be." Taani gets off of her bed, and walks over to her closet. I decide to leave it at that. Taani's as stubborn as a mule, and trying to convince her about something is like trying to get me to put on makeup. You'll fail, and you'll end up with at least a  _scratch_  on your body.

Just then, I realize something. "Isn't it your first day at work?"

"Oh shit!" yells Taani, suddenly more awake. She grabs some clothes from her closet and starts changing. As Taani's putting her shirt on, she asks, "Speaking of work, what happened with the animal shelter?"

"Oh, they're not really hiring right now. But I did put up an ad for anyone needing a pet sitter or dog walker."

"Nice!" exclaims Taani, struggling to put on her shoes.

Just then, my phone beeps. "Speaking of my ad, I just got a job. Some old lady has like three dogs or something."

"When do you need to be there?" asks Taani, trying to find something to on her makeup table. Probably for her red eyes.

"Uh, in twenty minutes actually. Shit, I have to get ready!"

I begin to look through my side of the closet, and then turn around and ask Taani, "What do I wear to take three dogs for a walk?" Taani walks over beside me, and pulls out some clothes. Old clothes, I notice.

"Don't forget to wear sneakers!" she reminds me, heading out as I get ready.

Narrator's POV

As Taani opens the door to go outside, she sees Swayam standing in front of her.

"Hi! Did you  _just_  get home?"

"Yeah."

Taani raises an eyebrow. "Were you drunk?"

"Nope," says Swayam, stepping inside the house.

"Is there a reason that you were out all night?" asks Taani, closing the door behind her, and folding her arms across her chest.

Swayam sighs as he turns back around to face his annoying little sister. "I was with a friend."

"Did you tell your mom that you weren't going to be coming home?"

"Not really."

"Well, I'm going to work right now, but I'm not sure if I should go buy a dress for your funeral, or pick out your casket."

"Very funny."

"A funeral is no laughing matter. Now, would you like your casket to be a shiny black, or a rich burgundy?"

Swayam stares at his sister for a moment. "Burgundy. Black is too... I don't know... overused?"

"Gotcha! Now if this funeral is going to be outdoors, I can't wear my heels..."

"Don't you have to get to work?"

"Oh yeah, I'm getting late," says Taani, looking at her phone. "But just to be clear, I'm wearing a red dress to your funeral."

"Get out!"

"Have fun in the afterlife!" Taani exclaims as she opens the door. "Oh, and I am  _so_  getting your room."

And with that, she's gone, leaving Swayam to be in peace. Swayam breathes a sigh of relief, but then cringes as soon as he hears his mother yell, "SWAYAM. SHEKHAWAT!"

There goes his peace…

* * *

When Vrushika walks into her house, the first thing that she hears is, "VRUSHIKA RAI PRAKASH I SWEAR TO GOD I AM GOING TO LOCK YOU UP IN A TOWER!"

There's the crazy, pissed off Siren that we all know and love.

Vrushika tries to tiptoe upstairs, but Sharon catches her. "STOP RIGHT THERE YOUNG LADY!" Vrushika freezes on the spot, and turns around to give her cousin her biggest smile. Sharon sends her death glare, causing Vrushika to lower her head.

Sharon walks up to her younger cousin and demands, "Where have you been?!"

"I was with a friend."

" _All night_?!"

"Shouldn't you be happy that I'm being social and making friends?" Sharon sends her another death glare. "I'll take that as a no."

Sharon sighs. "At least tell me where you were."

"Um, we kind of went everywhere."

"Okay... who were you with?"

"A friend, di."

Sharon closes her eyes, and then opens them back up. "As long as you didn't break the law, I guess you're off the hook. But don't forget about that date you have today."

"Ugh, don't remind me!" groans Vrushika, as she walks towards Saara's room.

"A friend huh?" asks Saara, raising an eyebrow as Vrushika enters her room. "Would this friend's name by any chance be... oh, I don't know... Swayam Shekhawat?"

"Actually, yes. But at least my friend wasn't the one climbing out of my bedroom window half-naked and quite literally running for the hills."

Saara cringes. "Crap, you saw that?"

"Yeah. You want to tell me what's going on?"

"No, not really," says Saara. Vrushika gives her a look, and Saara caves in. "Okay, let's just say that I was emotionally vulnerable, so against my better judgment, I got super drunk even though I kind of had a feeling that Nilesh and Vicky would spike the punch."

"Really? You're blaming it on the alcohol?"

"Yup! Now, let's find you a dress to wear for your date."

"A what now?" says Vrushika, widening her eyes as Saara begins to throw dresses out of her closet.

* * *

Kriya's POV

I ring the doorbell of the creepy house.

Yes, I am ringing the doorbell of a creepy house willingly.

"Yes?" asks the old lady who opens the door.

"Hi! I'm Kriya, the dog walker."

"Oh yes! I'm Laila, by the way. And if it makes you feel more comfortable, you can call me Laila Aunty. Now come on in."

I walk into the house, and three dogs tackle me. "Uh, Laila Aunty? A little help please."

Laila Aunty whistles, and the dogs immediately get off of me and sit down.

"Are you okay?"

"Uh, yeah, I'm fine. You have got to teach me how to do that."

Laila Aunty chuckles. "It's easy. And sorry about my babies, they just get super excited when they see people. I deal with this pretty much every time I walk in through the door."

I laugh. "Sounds fun!"

"That's debatable. Now let me introduce to the dogs."

Laila picks up the smallest dog. "This is Barbie. She's the only girl out of this bunch, and the boys are  _super_  protective of her. If anything happens to her, you answer to them. And trust me, I won't be able to help you."

Then she gestures to the two bigger dogs. "This is Frodo. He's a little on the spoiled side, and this is Troy. I swear, he was probably the Alpha of a wolf pack in his past life. But trust me, he's very lovable. Now, Frodo is probably going to be very lazy, but please make sure he's walking for at  _least_  twenty minutes. And Barbie is probably going to try and climb onto Frodo or Troy, but do  _not_  under any circumstances, let her do that. Or else you're going to need the Jaws of Life to separate her from them."

I nod my head. "Okay. What about Troy?"

"Oh, Troy's a good boy, you shouldn't have any problems with him."

"Alright then," I say, grabbing the dogs' leashes, "I'll see you in a bit."

"Bye!" Laila Aunty calls out as I leave with the dogs.

* * *

Taani's POV

"Please don't let these kids be spoiled brats, please don't let these kids be spoiled brats!" I plead to my Krishnaji as I ring the doorbell.

A lady opens the door and asks, "Can I help you?"

"Hi!" I say, trying to seem cheerful and not like a psychopath. "I'm Taani, the babysitter?"

"Right! Please, come in." Okay, she seems nice, I tell myself as I enter the mansion.

"I'm Ragini Vedant," says the lady, holding out her hand.

I shake it. "I'm Taani... wait, I already told you that." Genius Taani, genius!

Luckily, Mrs. Vedant chuckles. "Well, it's very nice to meet you. Let me show you around the house." Did she just call this place a house?

"Okay, so this is the living room, the kitchen's over there, we have about four bathrooms all over the house and the bedrooms are all upstairs. Lucky for you, the kids have their names glued to the doors of their rooms. They're all very into arts and crafts."

"Oh, cute."

"Yeah, they're adorable. Um, let's see what else?"

"The kids."

"Right! Well, there's three of them. Rimjhim's the oldest, she's thirteen. Then you have Adi, he's ten. And Pihu's the youngest. She's six years old."

"Okay, um, is there anything else I should know?" Wow, I sound so professional...

"None of them are taking any medications, and Adi's not really allergic to anything, but Pihu's allergic to peanuts, and Rimjhim will break out into hives if given strawberries, or if she gets stung by a bee. Also, Rimjhim's very difficult when it comes to homework, so you have to be very persuasive with her. But if all else fails, try to tempt her with chocolate. And if she says she doesn't have homework, don't believe her. I know for a fact that she has homework to do."

"Okay, that sounds great! And if there's an emergency and I can't reach you or your husband..."

"Try Laila Aunty, the old lady from across the street. She's very nice, and the kids love her."

"Alright! I'll take it from here. Have fun with whatever you're going to be doing."

"Thank you," says Mrs. Vedant.

She then yells, "Honey, the baby-sitter's here! Can you bring the kids down?"

Wow, now  _that_  is the kind of woman I admire. Friendly, classy, but also demanding when the situation calls for it.

A man comes down with his three kids. "I'm here. I'm Neil Vedant, by the way."

"Taani," I say, introducing myself.

"Okay, I guess it's time for us to go then." Ragini then turns to her kids. "Now, you guys be nice to your babysitter, okay?"

"Of course mom," says the tallest girl, who I'm assuming is Rimjhim, hugging her mom. "Bye!"

"Bye kids!" Mr. Vedant calls out, as he and his wife head out.

I close the door, and then turn to the kids. They look innocent enough. This should be a fun night…

* * *

"Swayam, here's table nine's order," says Amar, one of Swayam's closest friends and coworkers at Jai's Café.

"Thanks man," says Swayam, taking the order and then taking it to table nine.

"Here you go," Swayam says to the couple at table nine. "Enjoy!"

Swayam walks back to where Amar is, only to find him looking at a table near the counter. "What are you looking at?"

Amar turns to Swayam, and then points to the table. "That girl has been here for an hour, and she hasn't ordered anything."

"How have I not noticed her yet?"

"Because you've been running all around this café like all day."

"Right." Swayam then makes his way over to said table. "Can I get you any -" he begins to say, but instead widens his eyes in shock.

"Vrushika?"

"You serve Vrushikas here?"

"Shut up. And hey!"

"What?" Swayam gives her a look, and she exclaims, "Oh, hi!"

"You're such a doofus," says Swayam sitting down.

Vrushika raises an eyebrow. "Are you always this nice to your customers?"

"Nah, you're just special."

"Well I'm flattered." The two look at each other and burst out laughing.

"So, I've heard that you've been here for like an hour. Are you waiting for someone?"

"Yeah, my date."

"Your date?" asks Swayam, looking a little shocked.

"Yeah, why do you look so shocked?" asks Vrushika, folding her arms across her chest.

"Because I'm pretty sure you're not here by choice."

"Ding ding ding, we have a winner! What gave it away? My pessimistic, antisocial attitude?"

"The fact that you're wearing a dress."

"Ah!"

"So, did your date stand you up or something?"

"No," Vrushika quips, glaring at him, "I just got the times messed up. But he'll be here in a while."

"So, why aren't you ordering your food and stuffing your face before he comes?"

"Because then I'd be full by the time he gets here, and it would be awkward to just sit there and watch him eat."

"Can't you argue with that logic."

"I'd  _love_  to see you try."

"So, enlighten me. How exactly did you get yourself in this situation?"

"Well you see, my mother is extremely worried about the fact that I don't like to be around people, and setting me up on blind dates is her way of trying to get me to socialize."

"And you go along with this because..."

"I get a free meal because the guy usually pays, this date helped me get out of party cleanup duty," says Vrushika, counting off the reasons on her fingers, "and... it makes my mom happy."

"Aw, that's sweet."

"I try."

"I highly doubt that."

"Shut up and get back to work."

"Wait, I never told you I work here."

"Dude, you're wearing the uniform  _and_ you have a name tag."

"Riiight..."

"Real smooth Swayam," Amar calls out from behind the counter. "You guys are really entertaining by the way."

"Shut up Amar!" yells Swayam.

"Right, like Swayam just said, my name is Amar," Amar says to Vrushika.

"I'm Vrushika."

"Well Vrushika, you're right. Swayam does need to get back to work." He turns to face Swayam. "Get your ass over here Shekhawat."

"Bossy," grumbles Swayam, getting up. "See you later."

"Bye."

As Swayam grabs a towel and starts wiping the counter, Amar asks, "Is that guy her date?" Swayam looks up, and sees a guy approaching Vrushika.

"Probably... wait -"

"I was eavesdropping, remember?"

"Right."

"By the way, Vrushika sure has good taste in men."

"What?"

"I mean, come on, the guy's good looking. You don't have to be into guys to see that."

"You're a weirdo, and I don't see anything special about this guy."

Amar raises an eyebrow at his friend, amused. "Jealous?"

"Shut up."

"Yeah, you're jealous."

"And you're an idiot."

"Jealous," Amar sings. Swayam slaps him upside the head.

"I'm going to go take their order."

As Swayam walks off, Amar says to himself "This should be interesting... where the hell is the popcorn?"

* * *

Kriya's POV

"Troy's a good boy," I mutter, walking around the park, "you shouldn't have any problems with him." Bullshit! That little brat wouldn't hold still, and now he's gone.

"I'm going to kill your big brother when I find him," I tell Barbie. Barbie barks, and I'm assuming she means 'Do it and I'll bite you bitch.'

Yes, I'm talking to a dog.

Yes, I speak dog.

Help me Universeji!

After a few minutes of damaging my voice yelling for the dog, I sit down on the bench and groan. "Ugh, this is hopeless!" I stare at Frodo, and ask, "Do you know where that idiot might be?" Frodo growls at me, and I'm assuming that he means 'Did you just call him an idiot?'

Someone hit me on the head, please!

Suddenly, Barbie and Frodo start barking at something. I turn to where they're barking, and see a dog who looks exactly Troy... wait... holy shit, it  _is_  Troy! I run up to where Troy is, with the other two dogs of course. I'm not a total idiot.

"Oh my god, Troy!" I scream, hugging the stupid dog. "Don't you ever scare me like that again!"

"You have a dog?" I hear a familiar masculine ask me. I look up, only to find a very sweaty Reyaansh Singhania looking down at me.

"Hi!" I say, getting up.

"It must be a pain to take care of so many dogs."

"Oh, they're not mine. I'm just the dog walker."

"Still a pain."

"Sh... don't let them hear you," I tease before asking him, "So, do you come here often?"

"Every morning. I like jogging."

"God I miss my morning jogs! I never get the chance anymore."

"Trust me, I know the feeling. Nowadays, this is the only time I'm free to jog."

"I blame the fact that I have to use the Jaws of Life to separate bhai and Taani from their beds."

"Trust me, I know what you mean. Nisha and Aashi are awful!"

"Ooo, you tried to get Nisha to wake up  _and_  you're still breathing?"

"Just barely." We laugh out loud, and that's when we notice how close our faces are.

How did that happen? I look down, and see the dogs running around us, their leashes wrapping us up like a present.

So that's how. Those dogs…

"Well this is awkward," remarks Rey, offering me a smile. I laugh nervously, as I try to figure out how to fix this.

Then I remember.

I whistle, and all three dogs sit down. "Untangle us!" I command, and they run around the other way. "Thank you," I say, once Rey and I are at least three inches apart.

"Did you just..." Rey begins to ask.

"Yup. Now, I have to get these little monsters back to their owner."

"I'll see you later then." As I'm about to walk away, Rey call out to me, "Hey Baatcutter!"

I turn back around. "What?"

"Nisha's having lunch with her dad today."

"No!"

"Yeah," he says, turning around and jogging away. I guess I know what we're going to be doing tonight…

* * *

Nisha's POV

I hate this. I hate eating at fancy restaurants, I hate eating with my step-monster and her cretin of a child, and I  _hate_  the fact that my dad always finds a way to either question every single little thing I do, or just completely ignore me.

"You going to be okay?" Aashi di asks me.

"I'll be fine. But you'll bail me out if I go to jail for murder today, right?"

Aashi di chuckles. "Of course. But please don't kill anyone. Your mom would kill me if I let you become a convict."

"I'll kill them with kindness. It's a new strategy. Perfectly legal. I mean, if Selena Gomez can get away with it, why can't I?"

"You go girl! Bye!"

"Bye di!" I call out after her as she drives away.

I walk to the entrance and say to the guy at the desk, "Singhania?"

"Right this way," he says. He leads me to my dad's table.

"Thank you," I say to the guy as he leaves. I sit down at the table. "Guess I'm not the only one who's late. Where's Disha?" Yup! My step-sister's name is Disha, because it rhymes with Nisha. Why? You don't want to know.

"Disha's just running a bit late," explains Kavya, the step-monster.

"I see you got rid of that pink hair you had," my father remarks. "Good."

"No, the color just faded away. But thank you for reminding me to reschedule my hair appointment!" My father glares at me, and Kavya smirks.

"That's really bad for your hair you know," she says.

"Well, beauty is pain," I say, smiling at her. She glares at me.

We sit together silence for a minute. Then Kavya asks, "Have you gotten shorter?"

"What, no!" I say, giving her a strange look. "I'm just not wearing heels. You know, considering the fact that my dad threw a fit the last time I wore them."

"You looked like a slut," says my dad. Now do you see where I get my attitude from?

"Dad, I was wearing a  _floor_ -length gown with a long-ass train, and long sleeves that weren't sheer or lace. Not to mention, there was a high-neck that freaking choked me to death. Your taste in clothing sucks, by the way."

"Don't swear, it's fucking rude," growls my father, gritting his teeth together.

"Uh, you literally just swore. Like twice."

While our back and forth is going on, Kavya just sits there, sipping her wine and enjoying the show. Seriously, who has wine for lunch?

"Are we interrupting something?" I hear the sweetest most angelic, gag-worthy voice ask from behind me. I turn around to see Maleficent herself in the flesh. And who do I see with her?

Arjun. Freaking. Rai Prakash.

I am going to dance on his grave after I kill him. And bury him in Disha's backyard of course.

I turn back to my father and hiss, while gritting my teeth, "I thought that this was a  _family_  lunch. You specifically told me so."

"Well, I just assumed that you wouldn't listen to me," says my dad, not a  _hint_  of guilt in his voice. My own father has no faith in me... that is just... sad!

I smile at him, and then turn back to the witch and the traitor. "Well, then I guess that I don't have to feel guilty about inviting a friend of my own. He should be here right about..." I glance at the entrance and see just the person I'm looking for, "now," I finish.

He walks towards us and says, "Hi! Sorry I'm late."

"Oh, no worries Aarav. Disha and Arjun just got here as well."

"Thanks for making me look good guys," he says, winking at them before sitting down.

"Do you guys plan on eating your lunch while standing up? Sit down!" Disha and Arjun look at each other nervously, before sitting down. This just got good…

* * *

Vrushika Rai Prakash has never been on a worse date in her life. This boy is the most narcissistic, ego-maniac she has ever met! And she's met, and dated plenty. All this guy talks about is himself, but Vrushika being Vrushika just can't bring herself to say anything to hurt his feelings.

"So there was this stain on my shirt once," Roy, her date begins to say, but Vrushika doesn't let him continue. She's been listening to this crap for an hour, give the girl a break!

"Um, Roy, would you like to order dessert?"

"I would love to order dessert."

As if on cue, Swayam, who had been listening in on their conversation, approaches the table. "Can I get you anything else?" he asks them.  _Maybe some duct tape so you can shut this idiot up?_ he silently adds in his head. From the minute Swayam got their first order, he knew that this guy was going to be an obnoxious piece of boring. He wanted to take him by the collar, and throw him out of the café. But then again, maybe Vrushika likes obnoxious pieces of boring…

"I'll have the cheesecake. It sounds light."

"Okay," says Swayam, turning towards Vrushika, "and you?"

"I'll have the chocolate cake with the double layer of fudge."

"Are you sure?" asks Roy. "All that chocolate?" Swayam grips the pencil and notepad in his hand, and closes his eyes, trying to calm down.

He opens his eyes when he hears Vrushika say, " _Yes_ , Roy, all that chocolate." Swayam does everything in his willpower not to scream 'you go girl!' at Vrushika.

Instead, he smiles and says, "Alright then, I'll be right back."

When he walks back to the counter, Amar says, "Wipe that smile off your face, you look like a psychopath."

"You know what, I'm finally in a good mood, and I'm not going to let you ruin that for me."

"I heard what she said to him too. I literally wanted to scream 'you go girl!' at her."

"Same! See, this is why we're friends."

"I know. Now get your girl her cake."

"She's not my girl!" Swayam calls out to Amar, before entering the kitchen.

When Swayam comes out of the kitchen with the cakes, he walks over to Roy and Vrushika, and sets the cakes on the table. "Enjoy!"

"Thanks Swayam," says Vrushika, smiling at him.

"Wait, you know him?"

"Well, yeah, he's my friend. Plus he's wearing a name-tag."

"Who bothers looking at name-tags?"

" _I_  bother looking at name-tags!"

"Whoa, chill babe."

"Sorry," mutters Vrushika, taking her fork and eating her cake.

Swayam awkwardly walks back to the counter, where Amar says, "Bruh, she's on her last nerve."

"I know. Think she'll have an outburst?"

"Trust me, that guy, is going to get his ass handed to him by her."

"I'll take your word for it."

Meanwhile, Roy continues to drone about himself, as Vrushika tries to pretend that the cake she's stabbing with her fork is  _not_  Roy's eyeball. Once she finishes her cake, Vrushika says, "You know what? I really have to get going."

"I'll drop you off."

"That's sweet, but I'll be fine," says Vrushika, a little surprised that he actually offered.

"Alright then. Cheque please!"

Swayam walks over to them, and hands Roy the bill. Roy gets out his wallet, but his phone falls in the process. Vrushika picks it up, and is about to hand it back to him, when she sees a text.

"So are we still on for tonight? At the Plaza Hotel?" she reads out loud. "From Zara." Vrushika looks up at Roy, crossing her arms over her chest. "You were going to go on a date with someone else right after our date?"

"Well, I'm a guy, and I need to keep my options open," Roy stutters.

Vrushika gives him the most sarcastic of smiles as she continues to look at all his other text from tonight, proceeding to throw Roy's phone at his face once she's done.

"You are the most narcissistic ego-maniac I have ever met, and trust me, I have met and dated plenty. But guess what,  _babe?_  You are by  _far_  one of the worst. All I've done tonight is patiently listen to you go on and on about yourself, while I couldn't even get a word in! Any normal girl would've stabbed you in the eye with her fork and left you to pay for all the food. You are  _lucky_ that I am not any normal girl. Do you have any idea how many times I wanted to stab you in the eye with my fork? Well, neither do I because I lost count after  _twenty-six_. And after all of this, you have the nerve to go out with not just one girl the same day you go out with me, but  _multiple_ girls! And on top of that, you  _complain_  about me to your friends and your  _mommy_?

Get over yourself. Not every girl on this planet is dying to go out with you, and I definitely fall into that category of girls. Heck, I only came here for the sake of mother's happiness, and the promise of a free meal. If it wasn't for that, this date would've ended even before it began. I feel sorry for every single girl that has to go out with jerks like you. They don't deserve your crappy attitude, and you certainly don't deserve them in all their tolerant glory."

Vrushika turns around, and is about to walk away, when Roy grabs her by the wrist. "Who the hell do you think you are, talking to me like this?"

Vrushika punches Roy in the face with her free hand, and growls, "Go. Rot. In. Hell." She walks away, but then decides to turn back around to say, "I'm Vrushika  _freaking_  Rai Prakash, and you better not forget that."

* * *

Nisha's POV

Aarav Saxena is literally the best-friend anyone can ever ask for. I mean, who else would be your lunch date just so you can piss off your family? Aarav Saxena, that's who. Although, if I knew that Disha would be bringing Arjun with her, I would've invited Manik instead.

Oh well.

"Would you like to order?" the waiter asks us.

"I'll have the Cashew Nut Salad," says Disha.

"Make that two," says Kavya. Ugh, they're such health nuts.

"I'll have the Tom Yam Goong," says my dad.

"I'll have the Khao pad," says Arjun. Boring!

"I'll have the pad thai," says Aarav. Now there's someone who likes to experiment!

"Alright then," I say, "I guess I'll have Kai Pad Med Mamuang Himmapan."

I should really pat myself on the back for being able to pronounce that.

"I'll be back with your order soon," says the waiter.

Once the waiter's gone, my dad asks me, "Do you even know what Kai Pad Med Mamuang Himmapan is?"

"It's basically just chicken with cashew nut."

"If you wanted cashew nut, then you could've just ordered the cashew nut salad like your mom and sister."

"One,  _step_ -mom. Two,  _step_ -sister. And three, do you really expect me to survive on  _just_  a cashew nut salad? I need actual food to function. You know, like  _meat_?"

My dad sighs, and turns away from me. "So, Aarav, how are you?" he asks. Funny how the first thing my dad did when he was me was make snide remarks about my hair.

"I'm good uncle," says Aarav, "how are things with you?" I smile at him, grateful for keeping my dad occupied. My dad's always treated Aarav like his own son, and Aarav actually doesn't hate my dad like I do. Well, not as much anyway.

Meanwhile, Disha and her mother are in a deep conversation. But Disha's holding onto Arjun's hand for dear life, while sending me her 'I am so much better than you' looks. Does she think that her holding Arjun's hand will me make jealous and mad? God, she's an even bigger idiot than I thought.

I pull out my phone, and text Arjun.

"Why the hell are you here?!" Arjun looks at the text and raises an eyebrow. I glare at him, and he chuckles.

Ass.

I hear my phone beep and look at his text.

"Because I knew that it would piss you off. Especially since I'm here with Disha."

"Go to hell." I text him back.

"Ooo, someone's jealous..." he texts back.

"I am NOT jealous!" I immediately text back.

"Admit it. Seeing me with another girl, especially a girl that you despise, pisses you off. It makes you all hot and bothered and jealous." He texts me, sending along multiple winky faces. My face heats up, causing Arjun to smirk.

I furiously text back. "I repeat: Go. To. Hell!"

I also add all the angry emoticons I could find.

"That was weak." He texts back. I turn off my phone, and slip it inside my bag, giving Arjun a fake smile. Lucky for me, our food comes. I dig in, and we all eat in silence.

* * *

When Swayam goes outside, he sees Vrushika sitting on a bench, crying.

"Hey," he says softly, sitting down beside her. Vrushika wipes her tears away and tries to smile.

"Hi," she whispers to him.

"Don't do that to yourself."

"What?"

"Cry. That guy was a total jerk."

Vrushika smiles, a real smile. "Thanks."

They sit in silence for a minute, and then Swayam gets up. "Come on, let me take you out on a real date."

Vrushika raises an eyebrow. "A real date? Why do I feel like I should be scared?"

"Because you should," says Amar, walking up to them. Swayam punches him on the shoulder and turns back to Vrushika.

"You trust me?" he asks her, holding out his hand.

"If I must," she says dramatically, taking his hand and getting up.

As they walk away, Amar says to himself, "If those two don't get together, then I will lose all faith in humanity."

* * *

Nisha's POV

By the time dessert rolled around, I had had enough.

"I'm going to get going," I say, trying not to show any emotion. "I have somewhere to be."

"I'll drop you," says Aarav, sending me a worried glance.

I send a grateful smile his way. "Thanks. I'm just going to go to the bathroom first."

I have had enough. One can only take so much of her father berating her, and her step-family rubbing it in her face.

Walking into the bathroom, I splash my face with some water so it doesn't look like I've been crying. I take a deep breath and get ready to make my way outside, when the door opens.

And whose resting bitch face do I see when that happens? Why Disha's of course!

Kill me now.

" _What_ do you want?"

"Aw, is the little baby sad that her daddy doesn't love her as much as he loves someone that's not even his own flesh and blood?" says Disha, giving me a fake sympathetic look.

Bitch.

"I can't deal with you right now."

I try to move past her, but Disha grabs me by the elbow and pulls me right back. "Too bad, so sad. You listen to me right here, right now. Stop trying so hard to get your dad's attention by being the rebellious little bitch, the problem child. It'll never work, not with your dad, and certainly not with Arjun."

"What are you talking about?"

"Don't play dumb with me. You like Arjun, a lot. And just like everything else in your life, I'm going to take him away."

"Okay, one," I free my elbow from her death grip, "don't try to be Regina George, because she was a vindictive bitch, and you're just a whiny little brat, there's a huge difference. Two, I don't give a shit about my dad. Three, Arjun and I aren't even friends, so I don't care what you do with him. And four, wake the hell up! We're adults now, so start acting like one." With that, I walk out of the bathroom, and out of the restaurant. I don't even bother saying goodbye.

Once outside, I see Aarav leaning against his car. He opens the door for me, and I get in. Once he's inside as well, he asks me, "You want to talk about it?"

I want to protest, but with Aarav, I just can't. It all just starts pouring out of me like a landslide. "All I've ever wanted is one day where my dad actually made an effort to actually be genuinely nice to me. Is that so much to ask for? A daughter who wants her father's kindness? And Disha! What the hell is her problem? Why does she always act like I ruined her life? All she does is bitch at me, and honestly... I am so sick and tired of it."

"Look Nish, you tried with them. You tried with your dad, and Kavya Aunty, and Disha. It didn't work, so just stop putting yourself through this."

"I can't!" I shout, tears threatening to spill out of my eyes. "You know why? Because I'm stupid and I have hope. I have hope that one of these days they'll just magically decide to be happy with me. Why do you think I keep going out to lunch, and dinner, and parties?"

Aarav stays silent, and lets me continue my sobfest. Then, he envelops me in a hug. "It's going to be okay," he whispers into my ear. I hug him even tighter, and he adds, "If it makes you feel any better, I might've spilled something totally gross on Kavya Aunty." I burst out laughing, and break out of the hug.

"You're amazing, you know that?"

"I try." With that, he starts driving.

* * *

"Okay, do you think that we have everything set up?" asks Saara, walking around Kriya's living room.

"We've had to change a few things because of Nisha's crappy dad and step-family, but I think that we're good."

"Okay, so let's review. Movies?"

"I took out all the ones with amazing dads so Nisha doesn't feel bad."

"So we're left with?"

"Big Hero 6, Inside Out, Freaky Friday, Princess Diaries 1 and 2."

"All to help her laugh. And some of these movies have Lindsay Lohan and Anne Hathaway, so... bonus!"

"Then we have Brave."

"Because the mom in there is freaking amazing."

"And Cinderella."

"Evil stepmother and step-sisters, good choice."

"And finally, Mean Girls and Letters to Juliet."

"Letters to Juliet has Amanda Seyfried, and Mean Girls has both Amanda Seyfried  _and_ Lindsay Lohan in it."

"We are good!" remarks Kriya, giving Saara a hi-5.

"We're freaking geniuses," says Saara, nodding in agreement. "Now, popcorn?"

"Extra buttery," says Kriya, popping one in her mouth.

"Chips?"

Kriya holds up a green bag. "Lays Sour Cream and Onion."

"Alright, dessert?"

"This fancy chocolate chip cookie-toffee thing," says Kriya, tapping on a glass container.

"Okay, hopefully, that will taste like heaven. Um, pizza?"

"Spinach and mushroom, already in the oven."

"Thin crust?" asks Saara, as if that's the most important question ever.

"What else?"

"Great! Um, what are we missing... right, other activities?"

"Taani has nail polish, I found an old box of costumes and stuff and between the two of us, we have a killer party playlist," says Kriya, ticking each item off with her fingers. "Oh, and we have spin-the-bottle truth or dare."

"Perfect! And then finally..."

"Pillow fight!" both girls scream together, and then collapse on the floor, backs against the couch, laughing. Once they stop laughing, Saara asks, "Is Nisha really ever going to be okay?"

"I don't know."

"Is Taani?" Kriya had filled her friend in on what happened this morning.

"I don't think so. What about you?"

"I don't what to think anymore."

"Ugh, this is depressing," says Kriya, causing both girls to start giggling again.

Saara then turns her face towards Kriya's. "Dance party?"

Kriya turns her face towards Saara's and smiles. "Dance party."

* * *

"Okay, what are we doing?" Vrushika asks Swayam.

" _We_  are going to drink the best tea in Mumbai," replies Swayam, as they reach the tea stall.

Vrushika raises an eyebrow. "Really?"

Swayam pays for two cups of tea, and hands one to Vrushika. "Really."

Vrushika takes a sip of the scorching hot tea, and lets out a satisfied sigh. "Mmm... I needed that."

"I know. Now tell me, where did all of that anger come from? You're not exactly the most aggressive person."

"I guess I just snapped. I was so  _done_ with Roy and his utter bullshit!"

"Well, good for you. And that was a good punch you threw at him."

Vrushika bursts out laughing. "Thanks!"

"Thank you for doing this," she adds a beat later. "If it wasn't for you, I'd still be crying on that bench feeling sorry for myself."

"Glad I could help. Now, time to take you to our next destination." Swayam grabs her by the hand, and leads her to their next destination.

Once they reach a bhel puri stall, Swayam says, "I really hope that you like bhel puri."

Vrushika's eyes light up immediately when she hears the magic words, 'bhel puri,' uttered from Swayam's mouth.

"I love bhel puri!"

"Good," says Swayam, grabbing a plate from the vendor, "because there's nothing like some bhel puri to go with some amazing tea."

"You said it!" Vrushika happily begins to wolf down her favorite snack. "Yum, this is so good!"

"Yeah, your face really likes it."

"I'm a messy eater," Vrushika somehow manages to get through with a mouth full of bhel puri.

Swayam chuckles. "I can see that."

Vrushika then proceeds to wipe the messy goodness off of her face. "You still have a little something over there," Swayam tells her. She struggles to find the spot that Swayam's talking about, causing Swayam to sigh. He brings his thumb over to the corner of her mouth, and wipes it off.

"Thanks," Vrushika says softly, trying not to pay any attention to his lingering thumb.

"No problem," mutters Swayam, hastily removing his thumb from the corner of Vrushika's mouth. "Now for our final destination..." Swayam grabs Vrushika's hand once more, except this time, he runs.

"Slow down!" whines Vrushika.

"You're so lazy."

"It's one of my many skills and talents. Now where the hell are we?"

"Look around you."

"What? All I see are trees and grass. It's actually kind of nice. A little too much green, but nice."

"Look up."

Vrushika looks up, and then asks, "Is that a tree house?"

"Yup!" Swayam exclaims as he starts to climb up. "You coming?"

"I think I have to," moans Vrushika, following his lead.

Once they're in the tree house, Vrushika asks, "Is this yours?"

"Yeah, my sisters and I built it ourselves a while ago. But I think that they completely forgot about it."

"Lucky you. You get all the peace and quiet."

"Yeah, it's great for when I just want to be alone."

"You have a lot of stuff here too."

"Yeah, it's a lot of junk I've collected over the years. And lucky for me, this place is completely hidden."

"You know what's another amazing spot to just be alone?"

"What?"

"St. Louis's terrace. It's just so..."

"Peaceful?"

"Exactly! Kind of like this place."

They sit together in an oddly comfortable silence, until Vrushika says, "Thank you for showing me this."

"I thought it was about I showed someone this place."

"Wait, am I the first person you've brought up here?"

"Yeah, but don't tell my sisters. It's kind of supposed to be just for the three of us."

"It'll be our little secret," Vrushika assures him, causing Swayam to smile.

Just then, Vrushika's phone beeps. It's a text from Sharon.

"Where are you?! I'm worried."

"Shit," mutters Vrushika, as she calls Sharon. It goes straight to voicemail. "Hello, di? Di, I'm so sorry! The date ended on a sour note and I kind of wanted to be alone. I'm so sorry for making you worry. I'm going to be home to pick up some stuff, and then I'm going to head straight over to the sleepover, which I'm assuming Saara told you about. Love you, bye!"

"Sharon?"

"Yes, I left a message for your Laila."

"Shut up."

Vrushika chuckles. "Come on, let's go. If I don't get home soon, your Laila's going to end up in jail for murder, and you'll never even get to go on your first date."

* * *

Taani's POV

Worst. Night. EVER! As I walk towards my house, covered in paint, pasta sauce, and chocolate, with stickers on my face, I vow to get my revenge on the little brats.

I ring the doorbell, and di opens the door.

"Princess, what the hell happened to you?" she demands once she takes in my attire.

"They're monsters!" I scream as I enter the house. "Monsters I tell you, monsters!"

"Honey, how about you calm down and take a shower?" suggests Saara, while stuffing popcorn in her mouth.

"Yeah, then you can rant about the little monsters all you want," Nisha assures me.

"Okay," I mutter, walking to my room.

Narrator's POV

"Hey guys," says Vrushika as she and Swayam come in, "where's Taani?"

"She's taking a shower," says Saara, just as Nisha says, "She's trying to calm down the crazy."

"Okay..."

"Oh, by the way, bhai, Rey's already here," Kriya informs her brother. "He's in your room."

"Thanks chutki," says Swayam, using his sister's childhood nickname, running away before she could throw something at him.

Once he's out of earshot, Kriya snaps her head in Vrushika's direction. "Why were you with my brother?"

"We just happened to run into each other."

"She was out with him all last night," Saara says teasingly, wiggling her eyebrows suggestively.

Vrushika glares at her cousin, squeezing in between Kriya and Nisha. "So, what movie are we watching?" she asks, reaching for the popcorn.

"Well, we finished Cinderella, so now we're watching Brave," Nisha tells her.

"Sounds fun."

The girls are halfway through Brave, when Taani comes into the living room. "Hey guys."

"You okay sweetie?" Saara asks her as she sits down in between her and Kriya.

"Yeah, I'm fine."

"You want to rant?" suggests Kriya.

"Hell  _yeah_  I want to rant! Those little monsters poured paint on me, got their lasagna to explode on me, smeared chocolate on me, and covered me with cat stickers. I hate cats!  _Especially_  in sticker form. Oh... but they are going down! They thought that they could scare me away? Hell. No. I will go back there, and they will be taught a lesson!  _Multiple_ lessons."

"Okay, calm down crazypants," says Nisha, slightly afraid of her friend, handing her a slice of pizza. Taani takes a deep breath, and eats the pizza. They all watch the movie in silence.

A couple hours later, Nisha groans. "I'm tired of watching movies. Anyone else?"

"I agree," says Kriya, getting up.

"Yeah, my butt fell asleep," says Taani, also getting up. The other three girls get up as well, with everyone having to practically drag Saara off the couch.

"We finished all the food, what now?" complains Saara, obviously because her stomach could probably fit another bag of chips, a pizza, and a chocolate bar.

"Not the dessert!" declares Kriya, holding the glass container in her hands.

"Okay, so we can take this to our room and save it for later," suggests Taani. "Come on guys."

As soon as the girls enter the room, they all collapse on Kriya's bed.

"So, what should we do?" asks Vrushika.

Kriya and Saara look at each other, and exclaim in unison, "Dance party!"

"What?" mumbles Taani, looking extremely tired.

Kriya and Saara bring out a box, which causes Taani to ask, "Is that our box of old costumes?"

"Yup!" says Kriya, tossing a crown at her cousin.

"You want us to dance around wearing that stuff?" asks Nisha.

"Come on, it'll be fun!" Saara assures them, wrapping a sparkly scarf around Nisha's neck.

Vrushika quietly tries to make a run for it, but Taani and Nisha grab her before she can.

"Oh no you don't!" hisses Taani.

"Yeah, if we have to go through this craziness, then you have to go through this craziness," Nisha oh so kindly informs her.

"You guys suck." Saara hands her cousin a pair of heels, causing her to look at her as if she had grown another head. "I'm sorry, I can't even walk in these shoes of death, and you're asking me to _dance_ in them?"

"Suck it up sweetie," says Saara, as she hands Kriya a pair of sunglasses identical to hers. Saara turns on the music, a Taylor Swift song coming on.

"Taylor Swift?" drawls Nisha. "Really?"

"Oh please, you love Taylor Swift," says Kriya, getting into the beat. Saara joins her, as Taani starts singing along to the song.

"Traitor!" Vrushika and Nisha hiss at her, but get dragged into the dance as well.

Swayam and Rey were just chilling in his room, when they hear eardrum-shattering noise coming from most likely Taani and Kriya's room.

"Where's that music coming from?" demands Rey, checking to see if his ears were still working.

"Probably my sisters' room," Swayam says casually, used to this by now. "Want to go check it out?"

"Yeah!"

As they reach the other room, they slightly open the door, and find the girls dancing and looking ridiculous.

"What the hell?" says Rey.

" _This_  is what happens during sleepovers?"

"Apparently."

"What the hell bhai?!" the two boys hear Taani yell. They stop their conversation, only to find that the girls had stopped dancing.

"Don't stop on our account," Rey teases.

"You guys are such creeps!" yells Nisha, throwing a pillow at Rey.

"Ugh, get out!" groans Saara.

"Uh, I'm sorry, but I'm the one who actually lives here," Swayam points out.

"Yeah, well this is our room," says Kriya.

"It's two against one, and we're voting you off the island," says Taani.

"Get out," repeats Saara.

"And way to kill the mood!" complains Nisha.

Swayam and Rey just shrug, and walk away. They'll never understand girls…

After they leave, the girls all get in a circle. Kriya brings out a bottle, and asks, "Spin the bottle truth or dare anyone?"

"Uh, yeah!" exclaims Vrushika, taking the bottle from her. "Who's first?"

"You, because you already have the bottle in your hand," says Nisha.

"Alright then." Vrushika spins the bottle. The bottle spins around, finally stopping at... Nisha!

"Okay Nish, truth or dare?"

"Um, truth."

"Nisha 'the daredevil' Sen picked truth?" Saara says dramatically, raising an eyebrow as she continues to paint her nails.

"Shut up. Vrushi, continue."

"Hm, let's see... let's go something easy. First kiss?"

Nisha cringes and sighs. "Okay, so, this might come as a shock to you guys, but my first kiss was... Arjun."

The other girls all stare at her. Taani, Kriya and Vrushika share similar 'Well it's about time!' looks. Saara on the other hand, widens her eyes in shock and demands, "You kissed my brother?!"

"Technically, he kissed me."

"Saara, shut up," Vrushika tells her cousin. "Nisha, please continue to give us details."

"Well, it was the night of the fresher's party. He showed up at my place all angry, and then I got angry, and then he kissed me!"

"Wait, so you didn't have your first kiss until recently?" asks Kriya.

"Yup! I know,  _shocking_."

"Kind of," says Taani.

"Well, moving on, it's my turn." Nisha spins the bottle, and it lands on Saara. "Truth or dare Jwalu?"

"Dare."

"Okay, I dare you to..." Nisha's eyes land on a black permanent marker, "take this marker and draw on Swayam and bhai's faces. Then I want you to take pictures."

"Done!"

"Well, what are you waiting for?" asks Taani. "Go!"

"She never said when. I'm just going to wait until they fall asleep."

"Then you're going to have to stay up for a looong time."

"Whatever." Saara spins the bottle. It lands on Vrushika.

"Dare."

"Okay, I dare you to help me with my dare."

"I hate you, and now I'm going to bed." Vrushika gets up, with Taani following her lead.

"Me too."

"I'm going to sleep as well," says Nisha, as she and Kriya head over to Kriya's bed.

"Ugh, you guys are boring!" complains Saara. The other four throw their pillows at her. "Hey!" Saara flops down on the double mattress in between Taani and Kriya's beds, dozing off as soon as her bed hit the pillow.

* * *

"Midnight snack?" Nisha asks Kriya, who is currently looking through her fridge for food.

Kriya jumps up at the sound of Nisha's voice and hisses, "You scared the crap out of me!"

"Sorry. What are you eating?"

"Chocolate. And there are probably some crackers and marshmallows in the cupboards."

"Cold s'mores?"

"God, yes!" exclaims Kriya, as Nisha chuckles, getting out the crackers and marshmallows. Kriya moans in delight. Taking a bite of the cold s'more felt like biting into heaven. "Yum... this is so good!"

"You said it!"

Wiping her mouth, Kriya asks, "How was lunch with your dad?"

Nisha's entire demeanor changes after that question. "Same as always. Guess who Disha's date was?"

"Who?"

"Arjun." Even saying his name put a bad taste in Nisha's mouth.

"He didn't." Seeing the look on Nisha's face, Kriya groans. "Seriously, now I have two asses to kick."

"He only did it to piss me off, it's not that big of a deal. And what do you mean two asses to kick?"

"Well, there's Arjun, and then there's Aarav."

"Aarav? What did he do?"

"He was here with Taani all night, and the minute she's about to wake up, he runs like The Flash."

"He went out the window, didn't he?"

"Yup!"

"Huh, he never mentioned anything today."

"Today?"

"He was my lunch date. I knew that Disha would bring a date, so I brought one too, as a back-up. But if I'd known that she'd bring Arjun, then I would've asked Manik to come."

"Manik? As in Arjun's half-brother who he hates with a burning passion?"

"Yup! He's one of my best friends. This one time -"

Kriya cuts Nisha off by saying, "Wait, you're changing the topic."

"I'm going to do these dishes," Nisha says quickly, taking the plates and putting them in the sink.

Kriya walks up beside her, and gently asks, "Are you okay? Because literally, the only time you ever do dishes is when you're upset and you don't want to talk."

"I'm fine," Nisha assures her, rinsing off their plates. "So, when are you planning on telling everyone else about your kiss with bhai?"

"Wait, you know about that?!"

"Arjun and I saw it. So, what was it like?"

"It was... not the first kiss I expected."

"What do you mean?"

"I know it may not seem like it because I don't really make a big deal about these things, but I wanted my first kiss to be kind of special. Not all magical and fairy-tale like, but not while I'm drunk either."

"I get i. Every girl wants her first... basically everything to be special."

"Exactly! And what's worse is that Rey doesn't even remember it, and I can't bring myself to tell him about because I already lied to him about it."

"Look, I know my brother. Just talk to him." Nisha pats Kriya on the shoulder before she walks back to Taani and Kriya's room, leaving Kriya to think about what she had just said.

Little did she know, a certain Reyaansh Singhania had just heard everything that the two girls had said.

"You lied to me?"

Kriya turns, and sees that Rey is now right in front of her. She cringes. "How much of that did you hear?"

"Pretty much all of it."

"I'm sorry, it kind of just slipped out, and then I couldn't take it back because you said that you didn't remember, and it would be super awkward -" Kriya doesn't get to finish her blubbering because Rey had just put his lips on hers.

Kriya was taken aback by the kiss, but slowly melts into it. Her hands reach for Rey's face, and Rey's hands find her waist. They slowly break out of the kiss when they run out breath.

"Sometimes, you just have to try for a second time if something doesn't work out as well the first time around," Rey whispers softly, his breath fanning her face. He turns around to walk away, but stops and turns around after a few steps. "If it makes you feel any better, I lied too."

Kriya stands there, dumbfounded as she watches him walks back to her brother's room. She breaks out of her thoughts, and then heads for her room. Maybe a good night's sleep will help her understand what the hell is going on around here.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I introduced a couple more minor characters here, aka Nisha's family, the Vedants and Laila Aunty. The Vedants are not my OCs, they are all characters I have taken from other shows, but Laila Aunty and Nisha's family are definitely original characters. Also, Swayam's friend Amar is legit just a super OOC/borderline OC version of Amar from the actual show. 
> 
> Musical Inspiration: Sweeter by Gavin DeGraw, Oops by Little Mix ft. Charlie Puth, Check Yes Juliet by We The Kings, Problem Child by Simple Plan (this song is absolutely amazing, and perfect for Nisha), So What by P!nk, Just The Way You Are by Bruno Mars, Get The Party Started by P!nk and Lifeline by Angels And Airwaves


	16. Dil Se Dance

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In case anyone's curious, it's April 20th in story time. Just thought I should let y'all know that we're past chapter 15 and we're still not at May yet. Happy reading!

* * *

Saara's POV

"Crap," I mutter, as check the time on my phone. 7 AM. I just woke up at 7 AM, on a Sunday…

What the hell is wrong with me?

I reluctantly get up, quietly closing the door behind me as I leave the room. I head over to the kitchen, in search of food, but instead, I'm shocked to find Rey leaning against the counter, eating an apple.

"You're up early," he remarks.

"I could say the same about you," I counter, grabbing a box of cereal from one of the cupboards and simply putting my hand in to scoop it out and eat.

"That's disgusting."

"Like I care," I say, my mouth full of cereal.

"So, what are you doing up so early?" I ask, putting the box of cereal on the table.

Rey shrugs. "Eh, tired of sleeping I guess."

" _Tired_  of  _sleeping_?" I demand as if he's grown wings and a tail. "There are so many things wrong with that sentence. I mean, who gets  _tired_  of  _sleeping_?!"

"Uh, I do," says Rey in "duh" voice.

"Yeah well, you're you."

"Okay, rude!"

"I'm rude?" I demand, putting my hands on my hips.

"Yeah, and you're loud. Shut up before you wake up the entire house." I glare at him as I open the fridge.

"Huh, no chocolate," I remark, my eyes widening when realization hits me. "Quick, look in the second cupboard from the right to see if they are marshmallows and crackers there!"

"Bossy," complains Rey, but does as he's told.

"Nope, nothing."

"I knew it!" I exclaim in my "aha!" voice. "Someone had cold s'mores last night!"

"Cold s'mores?"

"They're like regular s'mores, except we don't roast the marshmallows, therefore there is also no melted chocolate involved."

"We as in..." Rey says, waiting for me to continue.

"Me, Kriya, Taani, and Nish. But I'm pretty sure Vrushika does it too..."

"Does what exactly?"

"Eat cold s'mores when we're upset or confused or just having one of those days."

"Oh, then it was that Baatcutter, and the little rugrat."

"I'm assuming that you mean Kriya and Nisha."

"Yup."

"Wait, how do you know this?" I ask him, furrowing my eyebrows in confusion.

"I was eavesdropping on their conversation last night."

I smack him on the arm. "Rude."

"So, you excited for auditions on Monday?" Rey asks, right after his arm stops hurting.

"Honestly, no. You guys almost  _won_  Footloose last year, and I don't want to be the one to mess everything up for you."

"What, you don't have faith in your dancing ability?" Rey sends me a questioning glance.

"Not really. I love to dance, but I just have this feeling that I'm not as passionate about it as the rest of you are."

"Well, what does dance make you feel like?"

I take a deep breath. "Dance for me is something I've simply done my entire life. As long as I can remember, dance has always been a part of my life. I love to dance, really, I do! But... I just want something else. Something more!"

Rey squeezes my hand reassuringly. "It's okay to want to do other things with your life. If you don't want dance to be your main priority, then it doesn't have to be. And as for Team Dazzlers, today's the first rehearsal, so I guess we'll just have to see what happens."

Suddenly, a familiar male voice screaming startles us.

"Was that Swayam?" asks Rey. I say nothing and quickly make a run for it to Taani and Kriya's room.

I'm dead meat.

Narrator's POV

"Dude, what the hell is wrong with you?" demands Rey, as he comes running into his best friend's room. Swayam, who was holding a hand mirror, removes it from in front of his face so that Rey could see his dilemma.

" _This_  is what's wrong with me," he hisses, pointing towards his face. Rey bursts out laughing when he sees his best friend's face unable to contain his laughter.

"Oh wait, it gets better." Swayam points the mirror in front Rey's face. Once Rey looks in the mirror, he sees that his face is in the same condition as Swayam's.

He grabs the mirror from Swayam's hand and yells "What the hell?!"

"It was the girls!"

"Ugh, I am betting you that this was all Nisha!"

"I bet those 3Js helped too!"

"Wait wait wait, who are the 3Js?"

"Oh, my sisters and Saara. Kriya's 'Junior Rani Lakshmibai,' Taani's 'Jhansi ki Rani,' and Saara's 'Jwalamukhi,' Jwalu for short. Were you not aware of this until now?" When Rey shakes his head indicating that he wasn't, Swayam says, "Man, where have you been?"

"Shut up," grumbles Rey, shoving his friend. "What about Vrushika?"

"Vrushika? Oh, she probably had nothing to do with this. I mean, come on, the girl's like a harmless little kitten."

"Not a big fan of that analogy, but it's true."

Meanwhile, Saara ran into Taani and Kriya's room as if she were being chased by Sharon to help with clean-up duty.

"Why did you just run in here like Milkha Singh?" Taani asks her, feeling extremely concerned for her best friend's health and safety.

"And why did bhai just scream like a banshee?" asks Kriya, half afraid that something was wrong with her brother, but also half sure that he's probably just being a drama queen.

"Swayam. Dare. Screaming. Dead meat."

"Oh, that stupid dare from last night?" says Taani, realizing what her friend meant, causing Saara to nod her head.

"Oh yeah, worst decision you ever made," Kriya remarks brightly, causing both Taani and Saara to send death glares her way. Kriya raises her arms up in surrender after receiving said death glares from her two best friends.

"Okay, where the hell is Nisha?" demands Saara.

"Promise me you won't kill her," says Taani, using her 'mom voice.'

"I will do no such thing," says Saara, as if Taani just suggested she go paint Sharon's room black just for the fun of it.

"Hey, you were the one who made the bad decision of accepting a dare from Nisha in the first place," Kriya points out, once again earning glares from her friends.

Just then, Nisha walks out of the bathroom, immediately taking note of the glares that Kriya was receiving. "Is she doing that thing again when every time she opens her mouth, her foot automatically enters it?"

"You!" Saara hisses at her.

"What did I do now?" asks Nisha, unable to recall if she's caused any mischief in the last half an hour she's been awake.

"Your dare from last night."

"Oh, is that why Swayam was screaming like a banshee just now?"

"Yes!"

Nisha slowly backs away from her crazy, probably caffeine-deprived friend. "Okay crazypants, you just need some caffeine in your system."

"Speaking of caffeine -" Taani begins to say, but she's interrupted when the others all yell, "No!" in her face.

"Okay, I was not going to ask for coffee," says Taani, shaking her head at her friends. Jeez, she's not that predictable... is she?

"I was just saying that we should probably go for breakfast soon," Taani continues to explain.

"Oh... true!" says Nisha.

"Yeah, I want food," says Saara. "And caffeine."

"I just want to know where Vrushika is," says Kriya.

"Oh yeah, where is Vrushi?" asks Taani.

As Swayam and Rey are walking towards the living room, they are shocked to find the dining table full of food. Berries, syrup, whipped cream, pancakes, waffles, multiple types of parathas, and pav bhaji. Their jaws are practically to the floor, mouths watering, seeing all this delicious food.

Once they manage to tear their eyes away from the feast laid out on the table, their attention diverts towards the person responsible for this: Vrushika Rai Prakash.

"Did you... make all of this?" asks Swayam, once he's finally able to speak again.

"Yeah."

"Wow!" exclaims Rey, his eyes going wide. "At least someone in the Rai Prakash family knows how to make something that's not poison."

"Wait!" shouts Swayam, before Rey can lunge at the food. He narrows his eyes at Vrushika. "Why did you make all this food?"

"Um..."

"Don't look a gift horse in the mouth man!" yells Rey, as he starts to run to the dining table, like a bull charging at the red fabric.

"Oh my god, stop!" yells a frustrated Swayam, grabbing Rey by the collar of his t-shirt. Swayam turns his attention back to Vrushika. "Now, you want to tell me why you've cooked up this feast for us?"

Vrushika bites her lips, the truth just waiting to come out. But she couldn't do that... and then she saw the look that Swayam's giving her and caved under the pressure. "Alright, alright! Nisha dared Saara to go draw on your faces and then Saara dared me to help her with her dare, and the guilt was just eating away at me so I made this wonderful breakfast hoping that I could bribe you into just letting this go, and I'm sorry okay!"

Rey and Swayam glance at each other, and then back at Vrushika.

"Alright, you're forgiven," says Swayam, causing Vrushika to breathe a sigh of relief. "But," Vrushika inhales suddenly, holding her breath, "we're going to get back at the girls, and you're not going to warn them."

"Fine, but I want absolutely no part in this!" With that, she marches over to the dining table, and takes the waffles, berries, and whipped cream.

"How rude," remarks Rey, as he watches the younger girl stab at her waffles with her fork, probably imagining Rey and Swayam's eyeballs on that plate. How... edible?

Kriya and Taani are the first ones to arrive at the dining table. They take their seats on either side of Vrushika.

"Did you make all of this?" asks Kriya, already halfway done her first aloo ka paratha.

"Yup," says Vrushika, as she continues to stab her waffles with her fork.

Taani looks at the way Vrushika's stabbing her waffles, and then at the look on her face. "Why are you hurting your food?"

"Oh, you'll find out in a minute," says Vrushika, gritting her teeth together, as Taani tries to take the fork out of her hand.

She didn't trust her with objects of any kind at the moment.

Soon, Saara and Nisha come out of Taani and Kriya's room as well, only to get attacked by raw eggs and toilet paper.

Let's rephrase that, shall we? Swayam throws raw eggs at Saara and Nisha, as Rey attacks them with a toilet paper gun.

"Why the hell do you guys even  _have_ a toilet paper gun?" demands Vruishika, as Saara and Nisha begin screaming at the boys.

"We were ten," says Taani.

"It was cool," Kriya decides to add, remembering how crazy they all used to get over that thing.

All the commotion had caused Smriti Shekhawat to come running in, while tying a bathrobe around her pajamas, shouting, "What's wrong? Is anyone hurt? Do I need to call an ambulance and/or the police?" But once she sees the state that Saara and Nisha are in, she bursts out laughing.

"What the heck happened to you two?" The two girls furiously point at the boys. When Smriti sees their faces, she begins to laugh even harder.

"What a great way to start the morning!"

"Thanks, mom," Swayam says sarcastically.

Smriti simply ignores him and sets her eyes on the food on her dining table. "Who made all this food?"

"That would be me," says Vrushika.

Smriti glances at Vrushika, then the food, and then at Saara. "Sorry Saara, but your cousin is my new favorite child."

"What?!" demands an outraged Saara, as if her day couldn't get any worse.

"Don't feel bad Jwalu," Taani tells her friend, "I was her favorite child before you came into the picture."

"Yeah, and I was her favorite child before  _you_  came into the picture all of two months later," Kriya tells her cousin.

"Yeah, and I was -" Swayam begins to say, but stops when he realizes that that makes no sense. "Wait a minute!"

Everyone else simply ignores him as they all being to eat Vrushika's yummy food. Well, except Saara and Nisha. They had it later on for brunch instead.

* * *

The day that everyone has been waiting for is finally here. Footloose auditions. But no one is more excited, or nervous, than Team Weaklings and Team Dazzlers. Just sucks that they have to wait until the end of the day for it.

"Di, stop being so nervous," Taani tells her sister, as she holds onto her hands, afraid that they might actually fall off from all the shaking that she's doing.

"Sorry," Kriya says meekly. The people in the canteen probably thought that she was insane!

"Here, eat this sandwich," says Saara, practically shoving a cucumber and cream cheese sandwich in her face.

Kriya looks at the sandwich and asks, "Sharon didn't make it, did she?"

"No, I made it," says Nisha. Kriya breathes out a sigh of relief, taking the sandwich from Saara's hand in order to devour it. "Plenty more where that came from," Nisha adds, seeing how fast Kriya was eating her sandwich.

"Look at you all prepared!" teases Taani.

"Oh hush," says Nisha, taking a sip of her coffee. "I'm surprised that Sharon isn't making you guys bust your asses and practice nonstop."

"She probably would, but none of the teams that are auditioning are allowed to use the rehearsal hall before classes. We're all going to get equal amounts of time during the day to practice."

"That makes sense," says Taani.

Suddenly, they all snap their heads towards Kriya when they hear her mumble something. Which was obviously inaudible since her mouth was full.

"Okay di,  _swallow_  your food, and  _then_  speak," says Taani, as if she's talking to a small child. Which, to be honest, Kriya can sometimes be.

Kriya finishes eating her sandwich and asks, "Where's Vrushika?"

"Damn it, why is that girl never here?" demands Nisha. "She's like freaking Houdini!"

Meanwhile, Houdini was making her way to the rehearsal hall. Vrushika never meant to go into the rehearsal hall... she just did. For some unexplained reason, her words, she can't seem to stay away from dance, no matter how hard she tries. She loves to dance, and she misses it like hell. But she can't bring herself to dance, never again, not after what happened…

But of course, her head, heart, feet, and iPhone had other plans. The next song that started to play on her iPhone was by far one of her favorite songs to dance to. She even created a whole routine for it! It's fun, happy and peppy... it makes her feel so alive, she couldn't help but start dancing to it. It would be wrong not to.

Screw stage fright. Besides, she's by herself anyway.

She takes off her big chunky boots, she was barefoot since she's always way too lazy to put on socks, puts her song at full volume, and begins to dance.

_Sometimes it feels like everyone's eyes are on you_

Vrushika begins her dance with a pose: one hand on its opposite shoulder, and the other on its opposite hip.

_What will they think, you're so afraid to make a move_

Her arms drop to her side as she looks up at the ceiling.

_You're second guessing every, every step yeah_

She brings her right elbow out and does little semi-circular motions with it.

_You gotta go and find that confidence_

She then brings out her left elbow and does the same.

_And show the world who you are_

She brings her hands together in one loud clap as she jumps up and spreads her legs apart when she lands.

_When you get down on the floor,_

She spreads her legs farther

_on the floor,_

and farther apart,

_on the floor_

until she's doing the splits.

_Come on and dance_

She gets back up from the splits that she's doing on the floor in one swift movement, putting her legs together.

_like nobody's watching_

She swings her arms across her chest from left to right.

_Let me see 'em hands, no don't ever drop them_

She does some tutting movements with her hands.

_Just let yourself go,_

She rolls over on one of the dice seats.

_whoa_

She stands on that random circular thing with a pole in the middle of it and spins around.

_And be wild,_

She jumps down, doing a somersault in the air before landing

_wild_

in a split.

_Forget about what everyone else says_

She stands up and does a sassy pose while pointing at her reflection in the mirror.

_Show 'em what you got,_

She does a back handspring.

_that you're ready to rock it_

She does a little moonwalk, her feet moving sideways and then in a little circular motion.

_Just take a chance,_

She turns her body to one side, her arms moving up and down.

_yeah_

She does the same while turning her body to the other side.

_Come on and dance,_

She turns her body back to the other side, her arms still doing that same action.

_dance_

She does the same thing once again, turning her body to the other side.

_Like nobody's watching_

She flops to the ground in a star formation.

_Doesn't matter what anyone else is doing,_

She runs over to the barre and spins around twice.

_yeah_

On her second spin, she grips the barre with one hand as she does the splits once again.

_Just close your eyes,_

She does a somersault.

_be yourself_

She jumps and lands into a star position, arms and legs far apart.

_and feel the music_

She does a little twirl.

_So go and do whatever feels so right,_

She does multiple leaps across the rehearsal hall floor.

_yeah_

She does a gentle swan pose as her leaps come to an end.

_Let out all the amazing there inside_

She does some contemporary tricks on the floor.

_And show the world what who you are_

She gets down on her knees and swirls her head around in a circular motion.

_When you get down on the floor,_

She gets up.

_on the floor, on the floor_

She does two pirouettes.

_Come on and dance_

She puts her arms up and to the sides, like Michael Jackson.

_like nobody's watching_

She crosses her hands one over the other, bringing them in front of her face, snapping her fingers, and then bringing them to the sides of her head.

_Let me see 'em hands,_

She brings her arms out in front of her, once again snapping her fingers.

_no don't ever drop them_

She swings her hips from side to side.

_Just let yourself go, woah_

_And be wild, wild_

She does some salsa steps.

_Forget about what everyone else says_

She dances around the rehearsal hall, doing leaps and pirouettes.

_Show 'em what you got,_

She does a flip, so a cartwheel without using her hands.

_that you're ready to rock it_

She does a quick little hip-hop move.

_Just take a chance, yeah_

She swivels her right hip.

_Come on and dance, dance_

She swivels her left hip.

_Like nobody's watching_

She has her hands in front of her, fingers all spread out, in a movie star pose.

_You're strong_

She does a cartwheel.

_So keep on dancing_

She spins to the ground, much like an ice skater.

_You can do no wrong_

She rolls over to the side, sitting up.

_So keep on dancing_

She brings one leg above her head, bringing the rest of her body up, causing her to stand upright.

_It's OK to be yourself_

_Just let it all come out_

_Come on and dance like nobody's watching_

_Let me see 'em hands, no don't ever drop them_

_Just let yourself go, woah (let yourself go)_

_And be wild, wild (yeah)_

_Forget about what everyone else says_

_Show 'em what you got and that you're ready to rock it_

_Just take a chance yeah (take a chance)_

_Come on and dance, dance_

_Like nobody's watching_

The rest of her dance is made of fast and upbeat hardcore hip-hop steps.

The sound of someone clapping is what brings Vrushika out of her happy land. Her eyes go wide, panic washing over her when she realizes that someone was just watching her dance. She turns around, cringing when she sees that it's Swayam.

"Hey."

"Hi!" exclaims Swayam, still in awe of her dance.

"What are you doing here?" Vrushika stammers.

"I was just passing by, and then I heard music. You're really good! I didn't know you were a dancer."

"That's because I'm not!"

Swayam raises an eyebrow, folding his arms across his chest, curious as to what Vrushika's response to his next question might be.

"Really? Then what do call  _that_?"

"Gymnastics."

"Gymnastics?"

"Yup, it was gymnastics."

"Hm... well, I think it looked more like dance than gymnastics."

"That's because not only was I a gymnast, but I was also a cheerleader."

"A cheerleader?"

" _Yes_ , a cheerleader. You know, 'rah-rah,' team spirit and all that other shit."

" _You_  were a cheerleader?"

"Yup! And since cheer-leading is gymnastics mixed with dancing, sometimes when I do my old cheer-leading routines, like this one, it looks like a dance routine."

"That was a  _cheerleading_  routine?"

"Yeah... whoa, look at the time!" exclaims Vrushika, not even realizing that she's not wearing a watch. "I gotta' go, bye!" Vrushika starts walking backward, tripping over the dice. She quickly gets up, getting her shoes and not even bothering to put them, and runs out of the rehearsal hall before Swayam can ask her any more questions.

"Weird," remarks Swayam, as he watches Vrushika stumble out like a crazy person.

As Vrushika's running towards the girls' locker room, Sharon stops her.

"Vrushi, what the hell happened to you?" asks Sharon, gesturing to the fact that cousin was shaking and not wearing any shoes.

"Nothing! Absolutely nothing!"

Before Sharon can stop her cousin, Vrushika makes a run for it.

"Crazy girl" mutters Sharon, as she heads towards the rehearsal hall, seeing as that's where Vrushika came from.

"Hello? Anyone here?" Sharon calls out. Swayam freezes when he hears Sharon's voice. He slowly turns around, causing Sharon's eyes to widen at the sight of him. "Um... was Vrushika just in here? Vrushika Rai Prakash? My cousin? Tallish, ridiculously skinny, she was wearing a red hat..."

"I know who she is," Swayam assures her. "And yeah, she was just in here."

The two of them stay silent for quite some time, until Swayam blurts out, "She's a really good dancer!" most likely in order to break the awkward silence.

"You've seen her dance?" demands Sharon, extremely shocked.

"Yeah, she's amazing! Although, she was a little flustered when she found out that I was watching her."

"That's because she has stage-fright. She can't perform in front of people."

Swayam cringes as realization hits him like a ton of bricks. "Oh shit!"

"It's fine," Sharon assures him, "she was probably just surprised."

"I don't get it though. She's a phenomenal dancer!"

"Right? I told her that if she just put herself out there, her stage-fright would just go away, little by little."

"That's weird because she seemed so confident while she was dancing."

"I honestly don't understand how her brain works sometimes. The girl's bipolar, I swear."

Swayam bursts laughing. "Trust me, I've noticed."

"Thanks for your help, Swayam," Sharon tells him. "It was nice talking to you again."

"You too," Swayam says softly. As Sharon's about to walk out of the rehearsal hall, Swayam calls out, "Wait!"

Sharon's pops her head back into the rehearsal hall. "What?"

"Was Vrushika seriously a cheerleader?"

"She was cheer-leading captain, not to mention she has the ability to become a professional gymnast."

"Wow... uh, thanks," says Swayam, as Sharon shouts "No problem," while walking away.

"Why did you have to become such a mystery, Vrushika Rai Prakash?" Swayam wonders out loud, before exiting the rehearsal hall.

* * *

"Dear god, I am way too nervous to be dealing with Hitler didi right now," complains Saara, leaning her head on Kriya's shoulder as they walk into APS.

"It's okay sweetie, we'll get through this together," says Kriya, patting Saara's head.

Taani rolls her eyes, taking a seat as Arjun sits down beside her. "You guys are such drama queens."

"You love us," both Kriya and Saara say at once, sitting down behind her and Arjun.

"I don't think you guys make it very easy for her," remarks Arjun.

"Shut up Arjun," Kriya and Saara groan simultaneously.

"They're just pissed because they know you're right," Taani assures him.

"Thanks, Taanu."

"Alright freshers!" shouts Professor Ananya, gaining their attention. "I have a new assignment for you to do, and yes, you will be working with the people you worked with last time!" Everyone groans. "Except for Vishesh and Abhishek, you may work together for the rest of the year." She then turns to face Arjun. "Mr. Rai Prakash, since Pinky Ahuja has transferred colleges and now we have an uneven number of people in this class, you will now be paired up with Miss Shekhawat and Miss Bakshi."

Taani flinches when Professor Ananya calls her that, prompting Kriya to immediately reach out and give her shoulder a light squeeze.

As soon as Professor Ananya heads over to her desk to mark their recent tests, Saara makes her way over to where Karan is sitting, leaving Kriya with Taani and Arjun so that they could work on their project.

"Okay, so what's the assignment again?" asks Arjun.

"The assignment is to pick a famous social scientist, and do a report on them," explains Taani.

"Okay, so, do you guys have any ideas on who we should pick?" asks Arjun.

"Um, Jane Goodall?" suggests Kriya.

"Oh yeah!" exclaims Taani. "She's that famous Anthropologist you mentioned, right?"

"Yeah, that's her."

"What exactly did she do?" asks Arjun.

"She lived with chimpanzees for a couple years." Seeing the confused looks on her friends' faces, Kriya elaborates by saying, "To study their behavior."

"That makes more sense," says Arjun.

"Wait, I thought that was that Dian Fossey chick," says Taani.

"No, Dian Fossey was an Anthropologist who studied  _gorillas_ ," Kriya tells her.

"What's the difference between the two?" asks Arjun. "I mean, they're both Anthropologists who studied primates."

"Well, Dian Fossey went slightly insane and was murdered, and Jane Goodall is super successful and still alive and kicking."

"Okay, Jane Goodall it is!" Taani says quickly, not wanting her cousin to go into detail about Dian Fossey's insanity and murder. "I'll go let Professor Ananya know."

Meanwhile, Saara and Karan were not exactly having as much luck.

"So..." Saara begins awkwardly.

"So..." says Karan, not sure as to what else he could say.

"The project," says Saara, gesturing to her notebook.

"Yes!" says Karan, snatching the notebook out of Saara's hands. "The project!"

"Right."

"Okay, so do we want to do this assignment about a psychologist, an anthropologist, or a sociologist?"

"Um... I'm not sure."

Karan sighs. "Alright, forget about this," he says, putting the notebook aside.

"But the assignment -"

"Oh please, you don't want to do this assignment."

Saara groans, irritated by the fact that Karan knows her so well. "Alright, fine. What do you want to talk about?"

"Friday night, and then Saturday morning." Saara stays silent. "Look, Saara, Friday night was all just one big blur of alcohol and bad decisions."

"Um, yeah... I- I totally agree," Saara says reluctantly. "Whatever happened shouldn't have happened. We're broken up, so therefore we should not be hooking up."

"Right," says Karan, sounding a little taken back by her response, like he knew something was wrong, "and Saturday morning -"

"We were both hungover and just got caught up in the moment," snaps Saara, cutting him off immediately. Karan simply nods at her, knowing that something had set her off.

"Alright students," they hear Professor Ananya's voice boom, causing them to breathe a sigh of relief, "time to get out of my class. Oh and Miss Rai Prakash and Mr. Modi, since neither of you bothered to tell me who your assignment's going to be on, I've taken the liberty to choose someone for you: Sigmund Freud. Enjoy!"

Saara and Karan both groan as they head out of the classroom with the others.

"Hey, Jwalu -" Kriya begins to say to her friend, but Saara quickly says, "Sorry Kriya, but I have to get to rehearsal. I'll see you guys later."

Kriya frowns at the tone of her friend's voice. "What's up with her?"

"Well, nerves plus Karan equals to our volcano about to erupt," Taani points out.

"Explain."

"She's nervous about auditions, and her conversation with Karan seemed a little intense, so therefore, she's kind of reaching her limit today. And I also know this because she prefers to be alone when she  _knows_  that she's about to erupt."

"Ooo, I'm actually starting to feel kinda bad for Sharon."

"Only a little though," Kriya decides to add a second later, causing both girls to burst out laughing.

* * *

"Saara, put some more feeling into it!" Sharon yells for what feels like the hundredth time.

Saara runs her fingers through her hair in frustration. "I'm sorry!"

Sharon sighs. "Fine, let's try that again."

They go through the routine again, except Sharon keeps noticing how Saara's mind is somewhere else.

"Stop!"

Everyone stops at once.

Sharon marches in front of Saara, hands on hips, menacing glare and all, reprimanding tone ready to be put into action. "What the hell Saara?! Where are you, and where is your head? Because clearly, neither one of them are in this dance. This is not amateur hour, do you hear me?!"

"Yes di, I hear you! I have been trying to get this right for the past half hour, and I'm sorry that I'm failing miserably at it. But you yelling in my ear, and in my face, and just- yelling, in general, is not going to help me get this right!"

The stare down between the two cousins is intense. No one says anything.

"Go take a breather," Sharon tells her, trying to be as calm and gentle as possible. Saara, who was about to burst into tears, simply nods her head and practically runs out of the rehearsal hall.

"Guys, everyone, just... take a break." Sharon dejectedly walks towards what they all tend to refer to as the 'Sharon Corner,' a corner of the rehearsal hall where Sharon just sits down and thinks, with no one being allowed to go near her, almost as if there was a protective bubble around it.

"I'll go check on her," Rey says softly, giving Sharon a reassuring smile as he follows Saara out the rehearsal hall.

Rey is slightly taken aback when he finds Saara sitting down on a bench from across the rehearsal hall, bawling her eyes out. He sits down beside her and immediately wraps his arms around her shoulders. Saara buries her face in his muscle shirt, clutching onto it for dear life. Rey gently runs his fingers through Saara's hair.

"Sh, it's okay," he says softly, causing Saara to cry even harder.

Once Saara's got that out of her system, she lifts her head up to look at Rey. "Thanks," she says, her voice barely above a whisper.

"No problem." Rey smiles at her as he wipes her tears away. "If staining my favorite dance shirt with your eye makeup makes you feel better, then stain away!" Saara giggles. "There's that Saara Rai Prakash laugh that we all love to hear."

"Now," Rey begins to ask, his face growing serious, "was it really Footloose that's causing this breakdown of yours, or this jerky ex-boyfriend that I've been hearing about?"

"A little bit of both." Next thing she knows, everything comes spilling out of her like a waterfall. For some unexplained reason, Saara can't seem to hide anything from Rey. She can't hide her feelings, she can't hide her emotions, and she can't hide her thoughts. Rey's the one person Saara has no qualms being honest with.

"God, I'm such a mess," groans Saara, when she's finished ranting.

"Hey, it's alright. So what if you're having a bad year? It'll get better. Right now, you just need to take a deep breath, calm down, and come back to rehearsals. Also, apologize to your cousin." Saara nods, following Rey back into the rehearsal hall, making her way towards the 'Sharon Corner.'

Sitting down beside her cousin, Saara beings by saying, "Hey."

Sharon smiles at younger cousin. "Hi."

"Di, I'm really sorry about blowing up at you like that. You're right, my head was somewhere else and I'm sorry. This is Footloose, it's serious, and I should be giving it my all."

"It's okay hon. I'm stressed too, and that's why I've been yelling all day. I think that we all needed to take a break."

"Thanks, di. Now let's get back to work!"

"That's the spirit!" exclaims Sharon, as both girls shoot up, Sharon going back to barking orders, and Saara trying to get Karan out of her head.

Later that day, it was Team Weaklings' turn to use the rehearsal hall.

"Five, six, seven, eight!" Kriya calls out, as she starts doing the team's routine, having them follow her.

"Stop, stop, stop!" she shouts a mere moments later.

She turns her attention to the team, specifically, at Karan. "Take a break guys."

Once everyone's kind of out of earshot at one end of the rehearsal hall, Kriya calls Karan over to the other end of the rehearsal hall.

"What's wrong with you?"

"Nothing's wrong with me."

"No, something's wrong with you. You're dancing with an unclear heart, therefore an unclear head."

"Thank you, oh wise one."

Kriya rolls her eyes. "Just shut up and tell me what's going on."

"It's Saara -" Karan begins to say, only to get interrupted by Kriya threatening him.

"Do I have to kick your ass along with Arjun and Aarav's? Because I have absolutely no problems letting this list grow."

"Wait, why are you kicking their asses?"

"Aarav climbed out the window to avoid Taani, and Arjun was Disha's date to a family lunch."

"Don't try to change the subject mister!" Kriya warns, only moments later.

"They're such idiots though."

"Right?"

"Wait, stop trying to divert my attention," Kriya says soon after.

"Alright, alright, I give! What do you want to know?"

"You and Saara."

"What about me and Saara?"

"What's the problem?"

"You tell me," drawls Karan. Kriya narrows her eyes at him, and then they go wide when realization dawns on her.

"Wow, you're serious."

"Yeah," says Karan, in his 'duh,' voice.

"Okay sassy pants," hisses Kriya, "tell me exactly what happened at that stupid party, and then whatever happened the morning after."

Karan raises an eyebrow at her assumption. "What makes you think it has something to do with the party?"

"Oh please, it has everything to do with that damn party! Now talk."

"Bossy."

"Karan," Kriya says sternly, using her rarely used mom-voice.

Taani's usually the one using it.

"Okay,  _mom_. So you see, Saara and I were both drunk, then we had a  _moment_ -"

"A moment?! You're not supposed to have  _moments_  when you're broken up!"

"We were drunk!"

"Excuses excuses!"

Karan sighs, rubbing his temples. "Dude, do you want to hear the story or not?"

Kriya lets out a dramatic sigh. "Fine, continue."

"Thank you, your royal highness. So the next morning, we kind of had another moment -"

"Are you kidding me?!" Kriya demands, smacking him on the chest. "What's your excuse this time? 'We were drunk.' Seriously dude?"

"No, actually, we were  _hungover_ , and got caught up in the moment."

"Unbelievable! Alright, fine, now what did you guys say to each other during Hitler didi's class?"

"That the entire thing was a mistake based on bad judgment and stupid decisions."

"Okay, so what's the problem?"

"Well, it's just that I didn't expect for Saara to be the one to come right out and say that it was all just a stupid mistake. I mean, it's just so out of character for her!"

"Well, you guys did break up."

"Yeah, but it's Saara! I don't know why, but this is just bothering me for some reason, like that entire conversation got under her skin somehow."

"Karan," Kriya begins to say, not believing what she's about ask, "do you still have feelings for Saara?"

"Of course I do!" exclaims Karan, shocked that Kriya would even ask such a thing.

"Then why did you break her heart you insufferable moron?!" demands Kriya, slapping his shoulders furiously.

Karan grabs a hold of Kriya's hands. " _Because_ , even though we love each other, us being together isn't the best. I mean, come on, we were constantly fighting, and it wasn't exactly  _fun_  for anyone."

"Yeah, but at least  _Saara_ was willing to try."

"My mom and dad tried too, Kriya! Look where that got them."

Kriya cringes when she hears Karan say this. "Karan -" she begins to say, but stops, unsure of what exactly she should say.

"Let's just go rehearse," Karan mutters. Kriya bites her lip, mentally cursing herself as she watches Karan walk away.

"Kriya, you coming?" Neha calls out to her, breaking her out of her thoughts.

"Coming!" she shouts, getting up and walking back towards her team, hoping that today didn't turn out to be a complete disaster... for either team.

* * *

"I can't do this, I can't do this, I can't do this!" Kriya keeps saying, almost like a chant, as she paces around the St. Louis auditorium later that day.

"Di, I love you, but if I hear you say 'I can't do this' one more time, I'll actually hurt you," warns Taani, not a speck of humor present in her voice.

"I think that's her way of saying 'stop being a nervous wreck, you'll do fine,' which is something you should probably listen to," suggests Nisha.

Karan rolls his eyes at their pathetic attempts to calm Kriya down. "Just take a deep breath and drink this fruit punch," he says, handing her a bottle of her favorite drink.

"Thank you," Kriya sighs gratefully, taking the bottle from him, deciding that Karan Modi is now the only one with a brain around here.

"Don't drink too much or you'll have to pee," Aashi reminds her.

"Aashi!" Swayam, Neha, and Bharat all yell at once in a scolding manner.

"Sorry," says Aashi, holding her arms up in surrender.

Shivam, who was there for moral support, and to see Sharon get her ass kicked, of course, rolls his eyes at his group of friends.

"Just go kick Sharon's ass."

"That is probably the greatest thing I've heard all day," Kriya tells him, breathing out a sigh of relief.

"Guys, we're going to do fine!" Swayam, the voice of reason, assures them. "We've got a killer routine, we're awesome dancers, we have nothing to worry about!"

"Preach," says Nisha.

"You're so weird," remarks Arjun.

"Bottom line is," Taani cuts in before World War III can begin again, "you guys aren't going first, so you have the chance to see what you're up against."

"And you're not going last either," Shivam points out.

"Okay," says Kriya, finally calming down, "are we ready?"

"Yes!" the team shouts at Kriya.

"Okay, chill! I'm just checking."

Meanwhile, with Team Dazzlers, Sharon was freakishly calm.

"I have never seen her like this," whispers Saara.

"She looks deadly," remarks Vicky.

"What? Shut up Vicky!" Rey hisses at his ridiculous friend.

"Yeah, she's only like this because she doesn't want us to be more nervous by being nervous," explains Simmi.

"Yeah, she's probably having a nervous breakdown on the inside," adds Vrushika.

"You guys do realize that I can hear you, right?" Sharon asks them, turning her head towards her friends, an amused expression on her face.

"Yeah, we're like right next to her," Nil points out. "Why do you think I, the biggest big-mouth on the planet, haven't said anything?" The others all start to look elsewhere, trying to avoid Sharon's gaze, causing both Nil and Sharon to exchange knowing eye rolls.

"Okay guys, I'm going to go take my spot in the audience," says Vrushika, giving them a double thumbs up. "Good luck!"

"Thanks Vrushi!" they all call after her.

Vrushika goes and sits down beside her friends. "How's Team Weaklings holding up?"

"Kriya was having a mini-breakdown, but other than that I think we're good," says Nisha.

"What about Team Dazzlers?" asks Arjun.

"Oh, Sharon di is  _deadly_ calm," says Vrushika.

"Calm before the storm," remarks Shivam.

"Shakespeare?" asks Arjun.

"I actually can't remember."

"Well, since there are two teams that are going to be chosen out of the four, I think that both di and Vampira want the opposite team to win," remarks Taani.

"Why?" asks Shivam. "And nice touch with Vampira. I like it."

"For competition's sake. They're each other's competition. And thank you."

Shivam glances over at Taani, and then tilts his head towards the others. "Is she always like this?"

"Every day," they all say at once.

"Hey, you've known me for like, not even a month," Taani points out to Vrushika.

Vrushika raises an eyebrow at her. "Uh, do you not remember the first day we met, or do I need to remind you?"

"Point taken."

"Sh!" hisses Nisha. "First performance's starting."

Team Dazzlers' dance was beautiful. It was graceful, technical, emotional, had a sort of concept... they were like a well-oiled machine. It looked like a professional dance troupe was dancing, not a college dance team.

"What do you think so far?" Vrushika whispers to her friends.

"They're amazing," says Taani. "Perfect even."

"Uh oh, she's using her analyzing voice," says Nisha, causing Arjun to let out a groan.

"Ugh, shut up. I'm just saying that they're a little robotic."

"Robotic?" questions Shivam.

"They're just so in sync, and you can't see any mistakes. It's  _way_  too well-rehearsed."

"You love doing this, don't you?"

"It's a talent which has now become a hobby."

"You are absolutely ridiculous," Vrushika says to Taani, shaking her head as Team Weaklings begins to perform.

Team Weaklings' dance was just as good, just in a different way. It was a hardcore hip-hop routine, filled with energy. They were in sync, but at the same time, they looked more relaxed and the individuality of each of the team members could be clearly seen.

"Okay, what do you have to say now Miss Obsessive?" Shivam asks Taani.

"One, I'm  _observant_ , not obsessive. Two, I think that Team Weaklings is just as good as Team Dazzlers. They're just not as...  _technical_."

"Technical?" questions Nisha.

"Their dance seems to come naturally, which is a good thing, but they're all doing their own thing, which is  _not_  a good thing."

"So what you're saying is..." Arjun says, waiting for Taani to continue and fill in the blanks.

"All I'm saying is both teams have their strengths, and their weaknesses, and if they weren't competing against one another, then they could probably learn a lot from each other."

"Well said," remarks Shivam, as they watch Team Weaklings' performance come to an end.

Once all the performances are done, RDX sir comes on stage. "Alright, now for some face-offs between the following teams..."

"Of course the universe just  _had_  to have Dazzlers versus Weaklings," Nisha groans once RDX sir is done.

"Two face-offs between those two teams?" says Shivam. "Now that is a disaster just waiting to happen."

"How about we just go see how our friends are doing?" Taani suggests, before Nisha and Shivam's negativity completely kills off her positive vibes.

Heading backstage, Arjun and Nisha head off to go see how Team Dazzlers is doing, as Vrushika joins Taani and Shivam with Team Weaklings.

"Alright, who's doing this shit?" asks Aashi.

"Um... you!" exclaims Kriya.

Aashi was shocked that Kriya wanted her to do the face-off. "But you're a much better dancer than me."

"Okay, I don't know if that's true, but you've known these people your entire life, so you know everything there is to know about them, not to mention their technique."

"Logical," remarks Shivam, with Vrushika nodding in agreement.

"Who's going to do the other face-off?" asks Bharat.

"Um, what about Swayam?" suggests Neha.

"No," says Kriya, shocking everyone once again.

"Okay, well, if not your brother then who?" asks Vrushika, crossing her arms over her chest.

Kriya takes a deep breath and says a name that no one thought that she would say.

"Karan."

Looks like Kriya Shekhawat is just full of surprises today…

Meanwhile with Team Dazzlers, before anyone on could even begin to discuss who should be in the face-off, Sharon sharply states, "Rey and Saara are doing the face-offs, end of discussion."

"Controlling much?" mutters Nil, as the others nod their heads slightly, in agreement, as Arjun and Nisha send sympathetic glances their way, all without Sharon noticing.

Simmi sighs, realizing that she had to be the team's spokesperson, once again. "Look, Sharon, we know you're the leader and everything, but shouldn't there be some input from us as well? You know,  _your team_."

Sharon looks confused as to why Simmi doesn't agree with her choice. "There is no discussion to be had about this. I think that Rey and Saara are the perfect choice for the face-offs."

"Okay, but instead of telling us 'hey, I think blah blah blah, what do you guys think?' you basically just made a  _team_  decision  _on your own_."

"Okay, Simmi, who do  _you_  think should be in the face-offs?"

Simmi takes a deep breath. "I agree with your decision, but -"

"Then why are you making such a big deal about this?!"

"Because it doesn't matter whether or not you thought we would agree with your decision, you should've known to ask us first!" Simmi stares at her friend, utterly baffled by her behavior, and irritated that she'd interrupted her like that.

Noticing the worried looks that they're getting from the team, Simmi calmly says, "You know what Sharon? I don't want to talk about this right now." She glances at Saara before continuing. "There's something else I want to talk to you about." Simmi drags Sharon away, despite her protests.

Back with Team Weaklings, everyone is still in shock due to Kriya's decision.

"Karan?" demands Swayam, pointing to Karan. "This Karan?"

"Yeah, me Karan?" asks Karan, pointing to himself.

"Okay, no need to turn into a caveman over this," Taani tells him. She then turns to her cousin and asks, "Can I talk to you for a second?"

"Sure," says Kriya, furrowing her eyebrows at her cousin, following her somewhere away from the team.

* * *

" _What_  Simmi?!" demands Sharon, frustrated as this is a crucial time for the team, and Simmi's here dragging her away to talk.

"First of all," Simmi begins to say, snapping her head towards her best-friend, "we're going to have a talk about your controlling behavior later. Second of all, you can't have Saara do this face-off."

"Why the hell not?"

"Because you know that either Kriya, or Karan, or both, are going to do this face-off. Because who better to go up against members of the opposing team than their best-friend, or ex-girlfriend?"

"Yeah, because it's a strategic move."

"I don't care! I am not letting Saara's friendship with Kriya go down the drain just because you want to  _win_. Not to mention, dancing with her ex-boyfriend, the first love of her life, the guy who broke her heart? Are you out of your freaking mind?!"

Sharon sighs. "Look Sims, if Kriya and Saara's friendship is as strong as everyone claims it is, then this shouldn't do anything to damage their friendship. And as for Karan, Saara needs to get over him, and maybe dancing with him is the best way to do that."

"They're in a vulnerable place right now, and Saara and Karan broke up less than three months ago. She needs more time to heal!"

"SIMMI! Enough, okay? Saara told me that she'd be professional and serious about Footloose, and I'm not about to change my decision to spare her feelings. I know my cousin, and as vulnerable as you all  _think_  she is, she's not. She can handle dancing against her best-friend, and she can handle dancing against her ex-boyfriend. In fact, I think that she'll be more than happy to kick Karan's ass in the face-off round. Now, I don't want to talk about this anymore, are we clear?"

"Fine," growls Simmi, gritting her teeth together, as she marches off to Team Dazzlers with Sharon following her.

* * *

"Taanu, what's wrong?" Kriya asks her cousin, wondering as to why Taani wanted to speak in private.

"Karan. Face-off. No!"

"What do you mean Karan can't do the face-off?" demands Kriya, understanding exactly what her cousin was trying to say.

"Because I know you know exactly how Sharon's devious brain works, because I know how Sharon's devious brain works, but I also know how your brain works."

"Taanu, what are you trying to say?" Kriya asks, shaking her cousin, hoping that she'll calm down.

"You know that Sharon's going to have Saara do the face-off, and that's why you want Karan doing the face-off."

"Because it's strate -" Kriya begins to explain, but Taani cuts her off immediately.

"Don't give me that crap about 'strategy' and 'game plan' that you give everyone else. I know you! This isn't about strategy, this is about Saara and Karan. Something happened, because otherwise, you wouldn't be doing this. And I know you're hiding it from me, so spill."

Kriya sighs, seeing this as one of the times where she hates that Taani knows her like the back of her hand. "Nothing happened. Now, why can't Karan do the face-off?"

"Because you shouldn't meddle like this. You should just let Saara and Karan work things out themselves rather than push them towards each other. Just... let things happen!"

"Taani, listen, Karan is doing the face-off, regardless of what you say."

Taani narrows her eyes towards her cousin. "Did something happen between them recently? Like, I don't know,  _at the party_?"

"No!" Kriya says, a little  _too_  quickly.

Taani folds her arms across her chest. "You're lying to me."

"No, I'm not."

Taani sighs, running her fingers through her hair. "Di, I know when you're lying to me." Kriya cringes, biting her tongue. She begins to say something, but Taani beats her to it. "You better get back to your team." With that, she walks away, as Kriya sadly watches her go.

It was time for the first face-off! Aashi versus Rey. Brother against sister. Twin facing twin. Their dance turned out to be more of a duet than an actual face-off. It was energetic and fun and carefree! That's just how Rey and Aashi dance together. It's always fun, there's no animosity between them. They're two halves of one whole. He's the yin to her yang. They know each other better than anyone else, and that's why they had no problems figuring out each other's moves.

"They don't look like they're doing a face-off," remarks Swayam.

"No they do not," says Nil, nodding in agreement.

"Whatever, they're doing great!" exclaims Neha.

"But who's the better dancer right now?" asks Vicky.

"I don't know, it's just so hard to tell with these two," says Simmi.

They all look at the dance really closely and decide.

"Aashi!"

"Is it wrong that we think that the opposing team has a better dancer?" asks Nil.

"Well..." Sharon trails off, unsure as to what she should say next.

"Oh hey, they're done," says Vrushika, gesturing towards the stage.

"Looks like it's time for the next face-off," says Sharon.

And now, for the second face-off! Saara and Karan. Karan and Saara. Oh no…

Their face-off started off with Karan. His dance was graceful and technical, something he does best. Each spin, each turn, and each flip was pure perfection. At least, that's what everyone else thought. Saara knew better. Karan's technique may have been flawless, but his dance had no heart. The concentration he put into this dance was etched onto his face in the form of furrowed eyebrows and wrinkled forehead. If he actually invested his heart and soul into this dance, then his eyes would shine brighter, and his smile would be wider, much like Saara has seen him do on multiple occasions. Karan picked the wrong day to be emotionally detached from his dance because ultimately, that would be his downfall.

Saara was next. Ever since she could remember, acro was her go-to dance form. It was the perfect blend of hip-hop and contemporary, where her flexibility could shine. She could also do leaps and flips for days, but since that was what Karan's dance mainly consisted of, she opted not to. Instead, she stuck with two things: her flexibility, and her emotions. She moved her body in such a way that no one thought was possible. She put her whole heart into this dance. It was all anger and sass, completely different from what Karan was doing.

Karan, who had not been able to take his eyes off of her, wasn't surprised when Saara ended her dance standing face to face with him. He looks at her intently, while she burns him with the fire in her eyes.

"They still love each other, don't they?" Sharon asks Kriya, who standing next to her.

"Yes they do," says Kriya, staring at her two of her best friends.

Once all the face-offs are done, RDX Sir comes on stage. "We've seen four teams perform, but alas, we can only pick two. And the judges have picked... Team Dazzlers and Team Weaklings to represent in Footloose!" The crowd begins to cheer for both teams. "Congratulations to Aashi Singhania and Saara Rai Prakash for winning their respective face-offs!"

* * *

"I can't believe we're going to Footloose!" exclaims Neha, jumping up and down.

"I know!" shrieks Aashi, hugging her best friend.

"Congratulations you guys!" exclaims Nisha.

"Yeah, great job," says Arjun.

"Thanks," says Swayam. He then starts to look around for his sisters. "Where are Taani and Kriya?"

* * *

"We're gonna' go to Footloose you guys!" exclaims Saara, "Ugh, I can't stop smiling!"

"I know, this is awesome!" shouts Rey, squeezing the life out of her.

"You guys deserve this," says Vrushika, "You did great."

"Thanks Vrushi," says Vicky.

"Uh, guys, where are Sharon and Simmi?" asks Nilesh, once he realizes that they're not there.

* * *

"What is wrong with her?" Sharon mutters to herself, as she heads over to one of the empty classrooms to be alone. She knew that she should be celebrating with her team, but she just couldn't, not when she's fighting with her best friend.

Sharon opens one of the classroom doors and locks it from the inside.

"Whoever you are, please just get out!" she hears a familiar voice say. She sees a petite girl with her head on a desk, buried in her arms. "I said get out!" the girl shouts, bringing her head up.

It was Taani Shekhawat, eyes bloodshot and all.

Taani narrows her eyes at Sharon and venomously spits out, "You! Of course it's you, who else would it be?"

Sharon raises an eyebrow at the younger girl. "What did you have for breakfast this morning, bitch flakes?"

"Yeah, I think someone must've accidentally swapped my breakfast for yours."

"Meow," Sharon says teasingly, holding one of her hands out like a cat's claws.

"Go away, Sharon." Sharon doesn't budge. "What do you want? Why can't you just leave me alone to mope in peace?"

Sharon sighs, walks over to Taani, and sits down on the chair next to her. Seeing as how Taani refuses to look at her, Sharon rolls her eyes and turns Taani to face her.

"Wow, you look terrible," remarks Sharon, cringing when she sees Taani's face close up.

Taani's head shoots up, her eyes shooting daggers towards Sharon. "Thank you, oh great Vampire Queen," Taani seethes.

"Must you be so difficult?"

"I didn't ask you to come sit here, Vampira. In fact, I'd prefer if you walked your ass right out that door."

"So... I'm Vampira now?"

"I'd like you to be Miss Invisible, but I don't really see that happening anytime soon."

"Dang, you are extra bitchy today." Taani stays silent. "This behavior of yours wouldn't have anything to do with the icy vibes I sensed between you and Kripa earlier, would it?"

"It's Kriya," says Taani, gritting her teeth.

"Whatever. Now, what's up?"

Taani sighs. "Let's just say that we have a difference in opinion."

"What about you and Simmi?" Taani then asks, taking Sharon by surprise.

"What do you mean?"

"Are you kidding me? The tension between the two of you was so thick that you could probably cut it with a knife."

"Shut up."

"Hey, you started this Ice Princess, it's my turn now."

"Can you just pick a nickname for me and stick to it?" asks Sharon, trying to change the subject.

"Stop trying to change the subject. Now, tell Dr. Taani what happened."

"Let's just say that we also have a difference in opinion."

"Huh, you know, we're both super vague."

"What do you know? We have something in common."

"We should not have things in common," Taani says quickly, horrified after realizing what Sharon just said.

"Agreed," says Sharon, equally horrified as she nods her head in agreement.

Both girls stay silent for a moment, before Taani grudgingly says, "Thank you... for this." Sharon raises an eyebrow at her, causing Taani to continue, "Don't get me wrong, I still hate you and everything you stand for."

"Aw, I hate you too."

"And here I thought I was getting the Snow Queen to warm up towards me," Taani says jokingly, putting a hand over her heart.

"I thought I was Ice Princess," says Sharon, furrowing her eyebrows in confusion.

"Po-tay-to, po-tah-to," Taani says dismissively. She then gets up. "Alright, it's your turn to be left alone to mope. You know, that thing I was doing before you oh-so-rudely interrupted me."

"You're so weird."

" _Anyway_ , have fun drowning your sorrows in chocolate. Apparently we're both chocoholics."

"I am never eating chocolate again."

"Great! That means I don't have to give it up."

"I hate you, Freshling."

Taani sends a bright smile in her direction after hearing this statement, "I hate you too Elsa."

"Pick a damn name woman! And if I'm Elsa, then you're Anna."

"We do have that chocolate thing going for us..." Taani begins to trail off.

"Get out," says Sharon, her face deadly, although there was a hint of playfulness in her voice. Taani throws her hands up in mock surrender and walks out of the room.

Once she's outside, she thinks about what just happened. "Huh," is the one thing that comes out of her mouth before walking away.

"Huh," says Sharon, as she watches Taani walk away.

* * *

"Swayam!" Vrushika calls out when she finally walks up to St. Louis's terrace. "Where are you?"

"Boo!" a voice booms from behind.

Vrushika rolls her eyes, arms crossed over her chest, and turns around to face Swayam.

"Seriously?"

"I didn't scare you?" Swayam asks dejectedly.

"No, sorry," Vrushika tells him sympathetically. "I'm a Rai Prakash, remember? Nothing scares me."

"What about dancing in front of people?"

Vrushika's face goes pale. "Sharon di told you about my stage-fright, didn't she?"

Swayam gives the younger girl a sympathetic nod before taking her hands in his own. "First of all, I need you to relax." Vrushika takes a deep breath in, and then exhales. "Okay, good. Now, I want to apologize to you if I made you feel uncomfortable."

"You didn't. But it's very nice of you to apologize."

"Thank you," says Swayam, taking a bow, causing Vrushika to giggle.

"Now, this has really been bothering me all day, so do you want to tell me why you were rambling on about not being a dancer?"

"No, not really," says Vrushika, starting to turn around and walk away.

Swayam grabs her by her elbow and turns her back around to face him.

"You were saying."

Vrushika glares at him. "Fine. I just think that since I can't dance in front of people, there's really no point in me dancing at all. So, I just try to stay away from dance. No dance, no stage-fright."

"That is the dumbest thing I've ever heard."

"Thanks, Swayam," Vrushika says sarcastically.

"Sorry," says Swayam, cringing at his own stupidity. "But at least tell me how you got stage-fright."

"I got stage-fright because I was at this really big dance competition, and I had a lot on my mind at the time, so my performance was absolute crap. I got  _booed_  off stage! So after that, I just didn't want to perform in front of people, ever again. Which is killing me because I love to dance. Dance is my life. I live and breathe dance, you have no idea how important it is to me! Ever since I took my first step, dance has been my everything. But I can't go through what I did two years ago. I just... I can't!"

Swayam simply stares at her for what feels like forever. He then pulls Vrushika into a hug, shocking her. She instantly finds comfort in his touch.

"Were you seriously cheer captain?" she hears Swayam say in her ear, causing her to laugh.

* * *

Dance. Dance is basically what keeps Kriya Shekhawat alive. She lives and breathes dance. She couldn't possibly live without dance. She danced when she was happy. She danced when she was sad. She danced when she was angry. She danced when she was confused. She danced with her heart. Dance was the one time she used her heart. Otherwise, it was her head that would take over.

Dance is the perfect outlet for her emotions. Like right now. Right now, Kriya was angry, and confused, and sad. All her emotions were attacking her at once. So she thought that dancing her emotions out would be better than being a Debbie Downer while her friends were trying to celebrate their victory.

So she danced. She danced her heart out.

She drops to the floor of the rehearsal hall, knees to her chest, her tears becoming harder to control. She hears someone clapping, breaking her out of her thoughts. She brings her head up, only to see Simmi standing in front of her. Kriya was surprised that she didn't hear the older girl come in, seeing as she was wearing high-heeled boots that make an ear-splitting amount of noise.

"Hey," says Kriya, trying to seem normal.

"Don't try to hide your emotions," says Simmi, sitting down beside her, "you're not as good at it as you think you are."

"Good to know."

"So, want to tell me why your dance seemed like the characters of Inside Out threw up on you?"

Kriya raises an eyebrow at the older girl, amused. "Did you just make a Disney reference?"

"Pixar, actually, but that's besides the point. And stop trying to change the subject."

Kriya raises her hands up in surrender. "Alright, alright! It's just... I have a lot of emotions just attacking me, trying to see which emotion should take over, and I hate it. Dance is the one thing that can clear my heart, and my head."

"Okay, so tell me. What exactly happened to cause this influx of emotions?"

Kriya sighs. "I had a little argument with Taani, and it's really bugging me."

"An argument?" Simmi sends a questioning glance towards the younger girl.

"Well, I chose Karan for the face-off, and then Taani confronted me about it. She said that she knew that I was trying to meddle with Saara and Karan's relationship, trying to fix things between them, and she warned me not to meddle."

"But you wouldn't listen to her."

"Yeah. It seemed like a logical thing to do. When there's a problem, someone's supposed to try and fix it."

"So you think with your head, and Taani thinks with her heart."

"That sounds about right."

They sit in silence for a bit, until Simmi finally breaks it by saying, "You guys are a lot like me and Sharon."

Kriya, slightly taken aback and confused by the statement, asks, "What do you mean?"

"Sharon, like you, thinks with her head, while I, like Taani, think with my heart. We had an argument, if you can call it that, like the one you had."

"About the face-off?"

"Yeah. I thought that her putting Saara in the face-off was a bad idea for two reasons: one, I didn't want something else to ruin her friendship with you; and two, I didn't think that it would be good for Saara to dance against Karan because I thought that she needs more time to heal from her break-up. Sharon, however, thought that Saara could handle all of this."

"But there's something more to it than that, isn't there?"

Simmi sighs. "Yeah. It was more about the fact that when we started to talk about the face-offs, Sharon basically decided everything for the team, and she didn't even think that what she did was wrong."

"Ah, the dictator!" This earns Kriya a disapproving glare from Simmi.

"Same goes for you and Taani right?"

"Oh, you're good! Taani's more mad about the fact that I'm hiding something, something about Saara and Karan, from her. I can't tell her anything because it's not in my place to tell. If Saara or Karan wants to tell her, they'll tell her. Saara doesn't even know that I know."

"Wow, your life sounds more complicated than the characters in Gossip Girl. And basically every episode of that show is filled with cringe-worthy drama."

"You're not helping."

"Sorry, I hate Gossip Girl with a passion. Moving on, you should tell Taani exactly what you told me. From what I've gathered, she seems like a reasonable person. She'll understand."

"I don't know, I kind of already tried to hide the truth from her."

"Well, you have to go try," Simmi tells her firmly.

"Okay," says Kriya, sighing in defeat. "But you have to go talk to Sharon as well. Tell her how you feel."

"Oh, I intend to."

* * *

Kriya has been contemplating whether or not she should go into the room she shares with Taani for the past twenty minutes. She doesn't know what to expect, so of course, she's being a wimp.

"Just go in!" her mother yells at her in frustration.

"Alright! Jeez, mom."

Kriya takes a deep breath and walks into their room.

"Hey," she says to Taani, who was sitting on her bed, hugging her favorite pillow and teddy bear to her chest.

"Hi," Taani says softly. Kriya takes that as her cue to sit down on Taani's bed in front of her, where Taani already has Kriya's favorite pillow and stuffed dog ready for her. Taani sits up, cross-legged, similar to Kriya.

The two girls just sit there in silence for the longest time, neither of them daring to say a word.

"I don't hear talking!" they hear Kriya's mom yell from outside their room. Both girls look at each other and burst out laughing.

Once they stop laughing, Kriya is the first one to speak up. "Princess, I'm really sorry about today."

"Don't be sorry. I was being weird."

They sit there in silence, once again, trying to figure out what to say next.

"I don't like it when you're disappointed with me," Kriya begins meekly. "It makes me feel like I failed at being a good big sister."

"Di, I'm not disappointed with you! And even if I am, or was, you'll always be my big sister, and I'll always look up to you. You've always gone out of your way to protect me, no matter what. I love you, you know that right?"

"But at auditions -"

Taani cuts her off immediately. "I was shocked, di. We don't lie to each other when it comes to something as big as  _this_. You lied right to my face."

"I'm sorry," Kriya says softly, looking down.

"Hey," Taani says, her expression softening as she brings Kriya's chin up to look at her, "don't do that. Don't feel bad. I know you, and whatever you do, you do for a reason. I'm sorry for making such a big deal out of nothing."

"You didn't make a big deal out of nothing! You were right, and so was I. You think with your heart, and I think with my head. But we both want what's best for Saara, and I think that for now, it would be best if we don't mention anything about this to her. You were right, I did find out something about Saara and Karan, but Saara doesn't even know I know. So -"

"It's not in your place to tell me anything," finishes Taani, taking the words right out of Kriya's mouth. "I get it. But next time, please just be honest with me. I didn't really like that feeling I got when you lied right to my face. I don't know what it was, but I didn't like it, not one bit!"

"Got it. Honesty's the best policy."

"Great!" exclaims Taani, hopping off the bed. "Let's go stuff our faces and talk about auditions!"

"Chocolate, all I want is chocolate," says Kriya, following her sister out of their room.

"You ate all the chocolate, genius."

"Well, then I guess it's time to get our adorable, innocent faces ready. How else are we gonna' get bhai to buy us more chocolate?"

"See, one of the main reasons why I look up to you," Taani says teasingly, causing both girls to giggle as they head over to Swayam's room to manipulate that poor soul into buying them chocolate for no apparent reason.

* * *

"Sharon Rai Prakash, if you don't open this door right now, I will break it down!" Simmi shouts, banging on Sharon's bedroom door.

Silence.

"Sharon, open the damn door!"

Sharon opens the furiously and screams, "What?!"

Simmi smirks at her. "Thank you so much for gracing me with your presence."

Sharon gives Simmi a fake smile as she pushes past her and enters her room. Sharon rolls her eyes as she closes the door. She turns around to face Simmi, crossing her arms over her chest. "Why are you here?"

"You know exactly why I'm here."

"No, I don't. I honestly don't see what you're making such a big deal about."

"Sharon, do you have any idea how  _mad_  I'm at you right now?! And not just me. The entire team is angry with you because of your behavior today."

"Simmi, decisions had to be made. I made them," Sharon states simply, not seeing anything wrong with what she's saying.

"Look, Sharon, I know that you're team captain, we all agreed on it," Simmi says, trying to calm herself down, "but that doesn't mean that you can make these decisions on your own! We're a  _team_ , Shar. Our opinions should matter just as much as yours."

"Simmi, this is a serious competition! We can't waste our time over discussing what our next move should be. Every second counts! Someone just needs to do what needs to be done, like I did," shouts Sharon, about to lose it.

"Sharon, do you seriously think that we don't realize how important Footloose is? Dance is important to every single one of us, not just you! We grew up with dance, we all became friends with dance! We were all there at Footloose last year Why are you behaving like this now? We were  _fine_  last year,  _without_ you dictating everything."

"We weren't fine Sims, we lost!" Sharon yells, finally snapping.

Simmi looks at her best-friend strangely, and then her expression softens once she realizes what this is really about. She sighs as she walks over to Sharon and wraps her arms around her. Sharon holds on to her best-friend for dear life.

"I want us to win, Simmi," she says softly, her voice barely above a whisper, so quiet that she couldn't even hear herself. "I don't a repeat of what happened last year."

"Sharon, that's not going to happen," Simmi assures her best-friend, gently stroking her head. "We are going to do great this year, but we don't need to be like this. All this yelling and fighting isn't going to do anything to help us. It'll only hurt us Shar."

"Then what the hell am I supposed to do?!" Sharon demands, clearly frustrated.

Simmi pulls out of the hug and turns Sharon to face, holding onto her shoulders tightly. "You are going to be the best captain ever, which you are, and you are going to get us that Footloose trophy  _without_  turning yourself into someone who you don't want to be,  _without_  doing things that you don't want to do."

"And you'll be with me, the entire time?" Sharon asks, fear and worry still evident in her eyes.

"We all will. Forever and always."

The bond of friendship is the most important bond there is. Friends are there for you, forever and always. Whether you love them, or you hate them. Whether you keep them close, or push them away. They'll always be there for you, no matter what.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In case anyone wants to the name of the song Vrushika danced to, it's Dance Like Nobody's Watching by Laura Marano. As for the dances, for Team Dazzler's group dance I chose a video from Youtube called "Best Contemporary Dance I Lived" which has six dancers in case anyone was wondering. As for Team Weakling's group dance, I went with "The Company Presents Turn Down For What." For Rey and Aashi's dance, I chose "Tommy & Charlie's Hip Hop from So You Think You Can Dance Week 1," and it wasn't that great, but it wasn't too bad either. Personally, I liked Karan and Saara's solo videos that I chose a lot better. I went with "TNS Daniel's National's Solo" and it is absolutely beautiful. Saara's one was also on point, I went with "Fire, Giselle's Solo" and the song itself is so good, the dance was amazing.
> 
> Musical Inspiration: I Love It by Icona Pop, Best Friend by Jason Chen, Strangers by Sarah Carmosino and You Found Me by Kelly Clarkson


	17. Elections, Apologies, Arguments, Oh My!

"So why do we have to be here again?" asks Aashi, walking into the auditorium with her friends.

"Because this is a mandatory assembly," Neha points out.

"Again, why?" says Aashi, as if the word 'mandatory' didn't mean a thing to her.

"Sh, I can't hear anything!" hisses Kriya.

"Yeah, shut up guys," says Swayam.

"Good morning everyone. I know you all must be wondering why this assembly has been called so suddenly, but there is an urgent matter that we must discuss with you students," RDX sir begins to say. "As many of you may know, we are in need of a new General Secretary and Assistant General Secretary after last year's GS and AGS graduated. So for the next two weeks, we are going to be having elections! Anyone interested in running for GS can go grab an application form from the office. Runner-up gets to be AGS. Good luck everyone!"

The students all clap as RDX sir walks off stage.

"Why are you giving me this?" Taani asks her cousin as she hands her an application form.

"Because you're the perfect person for the job, you love this kind of stuff, you have the experience from being Head Girl... shall I continue?"

"Okay, okay! I get it," says Taani, holding her arms up in surrender, "but I'm not interested in being GS, or AGS for that matter."

"But this could be the perfect distraction for you!"

"I don't need a distraction to get Aarav off my mind," Taani assures her cousin, handing the application form back to her. "Besides, I want to focus on my music."

"You have your cousin trying to convince to apply for this as well?" the two girls hear Vrushika ask, as she and Saara walk over to them.

"Saara's trying to convince to run as well?" Taani asks her sympathetically.

"Oh yeah!"

"Well, I'm right, and you should. You love planning events like this, you were an amazing Head Girl at Royal Academy... do you seriously need any more reasons?"

"Yeah, I don't want to do this."

"Amen honey," says Taani, wrapping an arm around Vrushika's shoulder.

"You know we're right," Kriya points out.

"Well, you might be right, but neither of us really care," says Vrushika.

"Girl you are on a roll!" exclaims Taani. "Are you taking attitude lessons from Nisha or something?"

"Who's taking attitude lessons from me?" asks Nisha, walking up to her friends with Arjun following her.

"Vrushika," says Saara.

"Why?" Arjun asks his cousin.

"Why not?" counters Nisha, glaring at him.

"Easy there tiger," murmurs Saara, coming in-between her twin and her friend.

"Hello everyone!" the all turn around to see Sharon with a bright smile on her face. She then turns to Kriya and says "Kripa," and then to Taani, "Freshling."

Kriya rolls her eyes. "Siren."

Taani, on the other hand, sends a smile her way. "Elsa."

"So did you finally decide on Elsa?"

"No, Ice Princess," Taani says snippily, sending a wink towards her.

"May I suggest a career in nicknaming?"

"I don't think that's a thing."

"You could probably make it a thing."

"Thanks, Snow Queen!"

The others all exchange strange glances. Since when are these two so... civil?

Sharon chuckles and then eyes the application form in Kriya's hand. "Okay, which one of terror twins is running for GS?"

"First of all, we're not twins," Taani informs her.

"Second of all, why do you ask?" asks Kriya.

"Because I think it is simply adorable that either one of you thinks that they can actually win," says Sharon.

"Well I think it is just so cute that you think that I can't win this election," snaps Kriya, causing her friends' eyes to go wide. When did she decide to run for GS?

"We'll see about that Kripa," says Sharon, taking an application form of her own.

Kriya scrunches her eyebrows in confusion. "I thought you were CS?"

"Oh the application's not for me, it's for Rey."

"Rey?" says Saara, sending her cousin a questioning glance. "As in Rey who is the king of all things lazy and irresponsible? He wants to run for GS?!"

"Yup."

"Since when does Reyaansh Singhania of all people want to run for GS?!"

"I don't know, go ask him yourself," says Sharon, shoving the application form at Saara. "You know where to find him." Saara marches away in a huff.

Sharon then turns to Kriya. "Good luck Kripa. You're going to need it."

Once Sharon's out of earshot, Nisha remarks, "That was weird."

"Yeah, strange," says Arjun, nodding his head in agreement.

"I literally just said that."

Arjun lets out a frustrated sigh, knowing that she was trying to pick a fight. "Alright, come with me. We need to talk."

"But I don't want to -"

"I don't care." Arjun takes her by the hand and drags her away.

"So, who wants to come with me to spy on them?" Kriya asks once their friends are gone, raising one hand up high in the air.

"You're not going to be doing any spying until we have a little talk," says Taani. "Come on."

"Ooo, I don't like the sound of this," says Kriya, following her cousin. "You have your serious voice on." Taani simply rolls her eyes.

Vrushika looks at the retreating back of her friends. "I'll be fine all by myself," she says out loud. "You guys just go leave me all alone in the middle of the hallway." She walks to the canteen to go stuff her face until her friends find her.

* * *

"Where are you taking me?" demands Nisha.

Arjun says nothing as they walk towards his car. "Sit down, please."

Nisha's about to protest when she sees the pleading look in Arjun's eyes and reluctantly does as she's told. Once Arjun sits down beside her, Nisha demands, "What do you want?"

"I want to know why you're so mad at me," he tells her, confusion evident in his eyes.

"Do you seriously not know why I'm mad at you?"

"No, I really don't."

"Lunch with my dad. You were Disha's date. Why?"

"Why, jealous?"

"Ugh, see! This is why I didn't want to talk to you about this. I knew that you'd joke around like this, and not understand the seriousness of the situation because that's just what you do!" yells Nisha, trying to get out of the car.

"Hey," says Arjun, grabbing her wrist. "Look, I'm sorry. Just... talk to me, Nish. I know that we bicker and everything, but we don't fight like this."

"Arjun, why did you come as Disha's date? Because she's hot? Or simply because you just wanted to spite me? You know what Disha's like, so  _why_ would do that to me?"

"Because I'm an idiot who makes stupid decisions and never thinks things through?" says Arjun, although it comes out as more of a question.

"Arjun!" Nisha shouts in disbelief.

"Okay fine! Listen, Disha asked me to be her date simply so she could cash in an old favor. I had no idea this was lunch with your dad, or that you were going to be there. If I had known, then I never would've agreed to it in the first place."

"Why?" asks Nisha, adrenaline running high.

"Because believe or not, you're important to me, and I tend to care about those who are important to me," Arjun snaps at her, his face coming dangerously close to hers.

Nisha stays silent for what feels like a century.

"Didn't see that one coming," she mutters, getting out of Arjun's car as fast as she possibly could before he had the chance to stop her. Arjun groans as he watches her go. He slams his head on the steering wheel, trying to figure out how to fix this mess he just made with his mortal frenemy.

* * *

"Rey!" yells Saara, her voice echoing throughout the rehearsal hall.

"Hey!" He then sees the application form in her hands and takes it from her. "Sweet! Thanks Tiny Toes."

Saara slaps him upside the head. "First of all, don't call me that Egghead! Second of all, why are you running for GS?"

"Why not?"

"Rey, I love you, you know that right?"

"I don't like the sound of this. Where are you going with this Saara?"

"Rey, you have so many amazing qualities, and you care about this college more than anyone else I know."

"Thanks," says Rey, smiling. But what she says next causes that smile to fade.

"But all your life, you've just had this 'go with the flow' attitude, and I love that about you, but as a GS you need to be more serious about these things," Saara explains to him, trying to find the right words to say what needs to be said without hurting her friend's feelings.

"Serious?"

"Rey, I'm trying to say this in the nicest way possible, but let's face it: you're irresponsible, you have no sense of timing, and you've got the attention span of a child."

"That's saying it nicely?"

"Rey, you're just not the best person to be GS of this college. And why do you want to run anyway?"

"Because of what you're saying!"

Saara furrows her eyebrows in confusion. "I'm sorry, explain please."

Rey takes a deep breath and sighs. "All my life, everyone has seen me as just 'the popular guy.' The guy who'd friends with everyone, the guy that girls want to date, and other guys want to be. I'm a freaking cliché! Becoming GS is my one chance to prove everyone wrong, that I can be a mature, responsible adult. But now I'm thinking that this is a terrible idea because the one person whose opinion has always mattered the most to me thinks that I can't do it!"

"Rey, I get where you're coming from, really, I do, but you don't need to prove yourself by becoming the new GS. That is a big risk to take. And honestly, I don't think you give yourself enough credit. Just because you're not the most responsible person, it doesn't mean that you're not a mature adult. You take care of your sisters, you look out for your friends, and the way you talk to people... you are wise beyond your years Reyaansh Singhania, and if you think for even one second that I'm simply saying these things on the spot just to try to make you feel better, then you've got another thing coming. Think about what I just said before you decide to run."

With that, Saara leaves the rehearsal hall, so that Rey can think things through.

* * *

"Why did you bring me here?" asks Kriya, confused as to why her cousin brought into the fire escape.

Taani sighs, sitting down on the stairs. "Because I thought that I might as well tell you what I have to tell you in your special thinking place."

Kriya sits down beside her. "Uh oh, I don't like the sound of this. What's up?"

"This... election thing," Taani begins to say slowly.

"I won't force you to do it anymore," Kriya assures her.

"I know, I know! It's not about that."

"Then what's this about?"

"You running for GS. It's a bad idea."

"Why?"

"Because you didn't even think this through, you just decided on a whim that you're going to run, just because you let Sharon get to you."

"So what, you think I can't do it?" demands Kriya, clearly offended by what her cousin said.

"Are you kidding me? Di, you are the perfect person for this job! If anyone would make a kick-ass GS, it would most definitely be you."

"Then what's the problem Princess?"

"The problem is that you don't care about being GS, you care about beating Sharon! That's not a good reason to want to be GS!"

"Oh, so you're Sharon's side now?" demands Kriya, jumping to conclusions.

"Sharon's side?" says Taani, shocked that her cousin would even suggest something like this. "Where did that come from?"

"What, you don't think any of us noticed that friendly exchange between the two of you earlier?"

"Okay, so maybe I decided that Sharon doesn't represent all that is evil in the world, that doesn't mean that I'm willing to go skip through a field of flowers for her."

"And when have I never been on your side?" Taani decides to add in for a good measure.

"Right now!"

"Well, that's because you're wrong!"

The stare down between them is intense. Taani takes a deep breath and says, "Di, listen to me. I don't doubt your capabilities, not now not ever. But I know you, and I know that you can never focus on more than one thing at a time. You believe in giving something your all, not giving two or three things little bits of you. And that's why if it ever came down to Footloose or your GS duties, you would pick Footloose every single time, and that's not fair!" She then gets up to leave.

But before she leaves, she turns back around. "And for the record, I'll always be on your side, no matter what."

* * *

"Rey, you in here?" Vicky calls out.

"Go away guys," mumbles Rey.

When Sharon spot where he's sitting, she immediately walks over to him and sits beside him. "Why are you sitting in my Sharon corner?"

"Because it's all nice and peaceful," mutters Rey, causing Sharon to exchange knowing glances with the others, having them sit down.

"You want to talk about it?" asks Simmi, poking him.

"There's nothing to talk about," Rey states blankly, not even fazed by Simmi constantly poking him everywhere.

"Like hell there isn't!" shouts Sharon, turning Rey to face her. "Reyaansh Singhania, if you don't tell me what's wrong in the next ten seconds, I will never speak to you again!"

This causes Rey to finally crack a smile. "I can live with that."

Sharon slaps him on the shoulder. "Rey!"

"Alright, fine. But only because you are all so annoying! Saara came by earlier to give me my application form to run for GS, and to talk me out of running for GS. She said that me being GS would not end well for any of us."

"Rey," Simmi begins to say gently, "you're a great person, people love you. That's one of the most important aspects of becoming a GS."

"And you're Reyaansh freaking Singhania!" exclaims Vicky.

Ignoring him, Nilesh adds in his two cents, "And I don't think anyone cares about this college as much as you do."

"And you're Reyaansh freaking Singhania!" Vicky exclaims once again.

"And as for the rest of this responsibility crap, you'll learn as you go along. You'll grow," adds Sharon, completely ignoring Vicky.

Poor guy. But that doesn't stop him from, once again, adding, "And you're Reyaansh freaking Singhania!"

Even Rey groans at that, but chuckles nonetheless. "Thanks guys," he says, smiling at his friends. Well, Sharon, since Nilesh and Simmi were working on getting Vicky to shut the hell up. "Now how's about we go make some posters?"

* * *

Kriya and Team Weaklings are all in one of the abandoned classrooms, making Kriya's campaign posters. But Kriya's mind is somewhere else.

Neha notices this and snaps her fingers in front of Kriya's face. "Hello, earth to Kriya."

This brings Kriya out of her thoughts. "Sorry guys. My mind is somewhere else."

"We can see that," remarks Aashi, causing Swayam to gently slap her on the head.

"What's up baby sister?"

Kriya sets her paintbrush down and sighs. "Taani thinks that me running for GS is a bad idea."

"But you're perfect for this job!" protests Swayam.

"Yeah, that's what Taani said."

"Wait, explain please," says Aashi, now extremely confused.

"Taani said that even though I'd make a great GS, I wouldn't able to handle both my GS duties and Footloose, so eventually Footloose would end up on the top of my priority list, and the college would suffer."

"Well, that's where she's wrong, says Aashi.

"Yeah," says Bharat, nodding his head in agreement. "We're your team, remember? We'll be there with you every step of the way."

"Thanks guys," says Kriya, smiling weakly.

Something about all of this just didn't feel right…

The next day, the college is filled with campaign posters and banners, but two people aren't exactly happy about this…

"He's actually running," mutters Saara, taking one of Rey's campaign posters off the bulletin board, "I don't believe this." She crumples it up and throws it aside.

"So she decided to run," says Taani, shaking her head as she sees her sister's posters, and then walks away.

This might be a problem...

* * *

It's been a week since Rey and Saara have talked to each other. It's been a week since Taani and Kriya have even looked at each other.

Elections were in full swing though. Rey and Kriya were neck and neck when it came to votes. Rey had charm and charisma, while Kriya had brains and morals. They were tough competitors for each other. No one else even stood a chance.

"Hey," says Swayam as he sits down beside Vrushika in the canteen. "Where is everybody?"

"Saara's gone to find Taani and talk to her about this whole thing going on with her and Kriya, and to get her mind off of Rey, who she still refuses to talk to, by the way. And Nisha is avoiding my cousin who is following her around like a lovesick puppy for some strange reason."

"I never thought I'd hear any of that in this lifetime. Or any lifetime."

"So what's up? I mean, you did say you wanted to talk to me."

"Yes, I did. How much do you trust me?"

"Well, you're one of the few close friends I have, and I'm 110% sure that you're genuinely sweet and not pretending to be sweet cuz' you're a creepy, psychotic, stalkerish serial killer so... I guess I trust you quite a bit."

"Okay good," says Swayam, breathing a sigh of relief, not batting an eye at her weird explanation, "because you may or may not end up hating me for a very long time, depending on how long you can hold a grudge, after what I'm going to ask you to do."

"I am so going to regret whatever this is."

* * *

"Thought I'd find you here," says Saara, walking into an abandoned classroom and sitting down beside Taani.

"Hey Jwalu," says Taani, trying to give her friend a smile.

"Way to be enthusiastic. In case you haven't noticed, it's me. So don't try to force a smile."

Taani smiles, a real smile.

"Now, want to explain to me why two of my best friends, who are sisters, refuse to speak to each other?" asks Saara, causing that small smile on Taani's face to fade away.

"I don't know, you want to tell me why you and your best buddy Rey have a cold war going on?"

"I asked first," says Saara, in her 'you can't win against me' voice.

Taani sighs in defeat. "I'm not okay with di running for GS."

"Okay... why? I mean, I've heard Kriya's side of the story, but I want to hear your side too."

"Look, you were there when she announced that she was running in front of Sharon out of the blue like that. Di wants to run, and win, to prove something to Sharon, and that's not really a good reason to run. I'm all for going against Sharon, but becoming GS is a big thing! It's too important to put on the line like this. You know di. She can't do two things at once, and eventually, our college is going to suffer because she'll always put Footloose first."

"She has the team to help her," Saara points out, after listening to Taani's long speech.

"I know that, but di wouldn't take their help. She's too proud to ask the team for help. She wants to do things on her own. Even though she's doing this because the team said they'll stick with her, in the end, she'll want to everything on her own. She's always been that way."

"And that's why you don't want her running for GS," says Saara, finally understanding Taani's point of view. "You know that she won't be able to handle this."

"Do you disagree?"

"No. In fact, I agree with you 100%. Mainly because I'm dealing with the same thing."

"Wait, is this about what I've been hearing about you being against Rey running for GS?"

"Bingo!"

"Why are you against Rey being GS? I mean, he seems like a great candidate. He's a people person, he's charismatic and friendly, he loves this college, he's always trying to help people... he's just an all-around nice guy! There aren't exactly many of those around here. He's basically inhuman. Like, there's no way he's real."

"You seem to hold him in really high regard," remarks Saara, giving her friend a strange, almost suspicious look.

"If you're thinking that I have a crush on him or something, then erase that thought from your brain. I barely know the guy!" protests Taani, clearly seeing where her friend's brain is heading to.

"Sorry, my brain's working in overtime."

"It's fine. And if I did have a crush on him or any other guy, then you'd be the first one to know."

"I'm flattered," Saara says dramatically, causing both girls to giggle.

Once they stop giggling, Saara asks, "But on a serious note, why are you so fond of Rey?"

"Well, the few times I've talked to him, I've realized the following things. He's a really nice guy, he's an amazingly patient person, he's a great listener, and he was always just willing to help. The first day we met, I was about to fall, and he didn't even hesitate to catch me. Fresher's party, I was a mess! I was crying, I threw my shoes at Aarav, I was screaming like a crazy person! And Rey just walks over and hands me my heels, asking me what's wrong. If it was anyone else, they probably would've called the police."

"That's Rey for you. He's always been that way."

"So why don't you want him to be GS?"

"Because Rey wants to be GS to prove that he can be a mature, responsible adult. Rey's a lot of things, but at the end of the day, he's kind of a kid at heart. Not to mention, he's not exactly the most responsible person, and he has the attention span of a flea. And like Kriya, if someone offered to help him, he'd turn them down. He likes doing things on his own, it's a pride thing! And a lot of the time, he doesn't think things through. He thinks with his heart. Rey's a very emotional person, and sometimes that can be a bit of a problem. I get why he wants to prove that he can be more than just everybody's best friend, and I know he can. But by being GS he's going to be putting a lot at stake."

"I see," says Taani, once Saara's finished her little rant. "So what are we gonna' do?"

"I don't know! They're both so damn stubborn, I don't think there's anything we can do," Saara says dejectedly.

"So, we're going to sit back and let this train wreck happen?"

"I guess so."

"Well shit."

* * *

"Why the hell did you bring me here Swayam?" asks Vrushika, when Swayam drags her into the rehearsal hall.

"Because I'm going to get you dance again," he states, not caring for his safety at all.

"You were right, I am going to hate you forever," says Vrushika, turning around to walk away from Swayam.

"Vrushi, stop!"

Vrushika reluctantly turns back around to face Swayam, hearing the desperation in his voice.

" _What_?"

Swayam sighs, sitting down on the floor, and then tilts his head saying, "Sit down."

Vrushika simply stares down at the guy she'd come to call her closest friend menacingly.

"Why are you doing this to me?"

"Because I'm Swayam Shekhawat, I'm kind of an idiot, and I can't let things go. Not to mention, it is killing me that you are such an amazing dancer, and you seem to be so attached to it, and yet you refuse to dance. And I know for a fact that you can't stand not dancing, so don't you dare deny it." Vrushika glares at him as she plops down on the floor, refusing to look at him. "Alright, fine, be that way. I'm still getting you to dance."

Vrushika snorts. "Good luck with that."

"Oh, I don't need luck," says Swayam, smirking as he turns Vrushika's head towards him. "Okay, when was the first time you danced?"

"Can you let go of my face?"

"I don't know, can I trust you to look me in the eye while you answer the twenty questions that I have prepared for you?"

"Seriously?!" When Vrushika sees that Swayam is 100% serious and will not budge until she does as she's told, she groans.

"Fine."

This causes Swayam to let go of her face and mockingly ask, "Now was that so hard?"

Vrushika gives him a death glare, which Swayam is not at all fazed by. Looks like he's gotten used to her death glares by now, which is surprising since all of Sharon's friends still get terrified of her, even Aashi and Simmi.

"So, when was the first time you danced?" asks Swayam, repeating his question from earlier.

"I was two, maybe three, when I saw my first live dance performance. It was these young kids, maybe a few years older than me, and I was in awe seeing them. Every step they took, every move they made... it was mesmerizing. I never wanted any of it to end. I just knew that I wanted to up there, dancing my heart out. So my parents put me in dance classes with di and her friends, and I just fell in love with dance. I'm trained in classical, I know hip-hop like the back of my hand, and contemporary and modern dance are my everything."

Swayam smiles as he watches Vrushika talk about dance. It's obvious how much she loves dance, and how much she misses it. He knows it's not just the stage fright that's stopping her from dancing, there's something else going on. But he decides to not push it for today.

Vrushika notices Swayam staring at her and asks "What's the point of this?"

"Patience," says Swayam, getting up. He holds out his hand for Vrushika. "You trust me?"

Vrushika stares up at him and then sighs. "Yeah alright," she groans, taking his hand so that he could pull her up. "What now?"

"Do you have any ballroom dancing experience?" asks Swayam, causing Vrushika's eyes to go wide, looking at him as if he's lost his mind.

* * *

Nisha was just minding her own business in the library, stocking up on books to read. But of course, the one person she didn't want to talk to just had to come ruin the peace.

"You've been avoiding me," says Arjun, walking up behind Nisha, causing her to drop the book she was holding.

She turns around and manages to get out, "I'm not avoiding you," before moving past him to look for another book on the shelf. Although, it sounded a lot more like "Urmnotvoidin'you." Yet, Arjun was able to make out exactly what she was saying.

He sighs as he picks up the book she dropped and goes to give it to her, just as she turns around, startling her. Arjun raises an eyebrow, amused by this side of Nisha. Never has he, or anyone else for that matter, ever seen the always confident and quick on her feet Nisha Sen so nervous. She looks like a deer caught in headlights.

"Am I making you nervous?" he asks, reaching over Nisha's head to put the book in his hand back on the shelf, putting them together in close proximity.

"You don't make me nervous," snaps Nisha, switching back to her regular old fiery self, causing Arjun to breathe a sigh of relief.

"Then what is it? Why are you avoiding me like this?"

"I'm not avoiding you," she says nervously, lying through her teeth as she pushes past him. Arjun grabs her by the wrist and spins her around to face him.

"You're lying," he practically spits in her face. But then, seeing that look on Nisha's face, that same look he saw when he confronted her after the Fresher's Party, the same look he saw a week when they were in his car, his expression softens as he loosens his grip on her.

"I'm sorry," he says softly.

"It's fine," Nisha assures him. She then notices the look the shock on his face and decides to add, "If you're thinking that you hurt me like some big bad monster or something, then you couldn't be more wrong. You didn't, I'm fine. You're too...  _you_ to hurt anyone. Whether it's emotionally or physically. You're a fixer, not a breaker."

"That might just be the nicest thing you've ever said to me," says Arjun, chuckling, his nerves easing up a little.

His face then becomes serious as he desperately says, "Just tell me what's wrong with you Nish. What happened? Did I do something?"

"Arjun, stop!" Nisha yells, completely forgetting that this is a library.

"Sh!" they hear multiple people hiss at them.

Nisha simply shrugs it off. "Juno, we don't hate each other, I know that. I'd even go as far as to say that we might actually care about one another. But we don't exactly like each other either. We've never been like...  _this_!"

"Like what?!" demands Arjun, extremely frustrated by now.

"I don't know, nice!"

"Nice?!" says Arjun, baffled by Nisha's choice of words.

"Look," Nisha begins to say, trying to calm down, "lately things between us have been more... intense. We fight, we argue, but it's not serious, it never is! Our arguments have never run so deep. Usually we just fight like it's no big deal and eventually get over it and start fighting again. It's what we do, it's how we communicate. We care about each other, I'm not going to deny that. But neither of us have ever said it out loud."

"So this is about what I said to you in my car."

"Yes! You just came out there and said that you care about me, and I'm not used to you saying stuff like that, especially to me. It freaked me out, okay?"

"Nish, calm down!" says Arjun, placing his hands on her shoulders. Nisha takes a deep breath in, and then lets it all out. "You good?" Nisha gives him a slight nod in response. "Good," Arjun says gently, "Now listen to me, and don't interrupt." Nisha's about to protest when Arjun gives her a look, silencing her.

"I get why you were a little freaked out by me saying what I said last week. I mean, if one fine day you simply decided to be all like 'Arjun, you are important to me and I genuinely care about you,' then I would probably think that you've finally lost and need to start seeing a therapist, ASAP. And face it, the nicest thing I've ever said to you is probably something along the lines of 'You don't suck' or 'You're not the bane of my existence.' And that's most likely the nicest thing that I've also heard you say about me. So yeah, I get that being nice to each other is not something we exactly do. But this isn't about me being nice to you, this about me wanting to make sure that you're okay because yes, I do give a damn about happens to you Nisha Sen. I'm worried about you, and I just wanted to make sure that you were okay, that's it."

Nisha says nothing for what feels like centuries, at least to Arjun who shouts, "Well say something!"

"Oh, um..." Nisha struggles to find her words, not realizing that she was just being a space cadet. "Uh, okay I guess?"

"Okay?!" sputters Arjun. "That's all you have to say to me?"

"Well, what do you want me to say? Thank you, for trying to ease my nerves like this?"

But a second later she adds, "Wait... actually, yeah. Thank you for trying to ease my nerves like this. I... appreciate it."

"It killed you to say that, didn't it?"

"Oh you have no idea!" exclaims Nisha, causing them both to burst out laughing.

"You two, what is this behavior?!" they hear a shrill voice screech from behind them, "Do you have any idea that you are disrupting everyone here?! Out out out!" Nisha and Arjun exchange terrified glances as the run out of there so fast that The Flash himself would be proud.

Once they're outside, Nisha snaps, "Great job thorn in my side! Now I'll never get to come back to the library."

"Hey, you were the one who started screaming like a crazy person you pain in my ass!"

The stare down between them is intense... until they burst out laughing once again. That's just how Nisha and Arjun communicate. They fight, they argue, they make up in their own way. But at the end of the day, they care about each other more than they'd like to let on.

* * *

Turns out, Vrushika was trained in some of the basic ballroom dances, like salsa and the waltz. But salsa was her favorite. So why not start with something she's comfortable with?

Swayam and Vrushika had both taken their shoes off, and Vrushika had tied her green shirt around her waist. "Alright Mr. Dance Teacher slash therapist," says Vrushika, almost as if she was challenging him, "let's see what you got!"

"Okay," says Swayam, almost as if to say 'challenge accepted.' "You said that you've always just felt in your element when it comes to salsa and contemporary, right?"

"Right."

"So... why not combine them?" he suggests, turning on the music, as Vrushika raises an eyebrow.

Swayam starts doing some salsa steps, causing Vrushika to widen her eyes. Seeing Swayam Shekhawat of all people do salsa of all things, was a sight to see. Vrushika's always seen Swayam as the sweet, friendly boy-next-door that basically everyone else sees as well. This guy was a lot more... and then some! It was nice to see this other side of Swayam. It was different than his usual slightly goofy side, but she liked it nonetheless.

Vrushika lightly applauds Swayam once he's done, like how you sometimes see people do at golf tournaments, hence the name 'golf clap.'

"Okay, I have to admit, I'm impressed."

"Good, because now it's my turn to be impressed."

"Say what?" asks Vrushika, her smile disappearing from her face instantly.

"Come on Vrushi!" he exclaims, practically shaking her as he grabs her by the shoulders. "I know you can do this. All you need to do is -"

"Trust you, got it."

"No. You need to trust yourself. Think you can do that?"

"I can try."

"I think you can do a lot better than just try," says Swayam, turning the music on.

It took a while for Vrushika to get herself dance her heart out, especially with Swayam present. But for some reason, it wasn't as hard as she expected it to be. Dancing with Swayam came naturally for her, she just didn't know how to explain it. She saw how he danced, he's seen her dance... it was easy for them to get comfortable with one other's styles and techniques. They flowed together like they were one and the same.

"Now was that so hard?" Swayam asks mockingly, once they finish their dance.

"Whatever," mumbles Vrushika, trying hard not to smile. Swayam then gets this mischievous look in his eyes that very few have ever seen, causing Vrushika to stare at him weirdly.

"Swayam, what -" she begins to ask, but doesn't get to finish asking as Swayam starts to tickle her.

Damn her for telling Swayam that she's easily ticklish practically everywhere on her body!

"Swayam stop!" Vrushika struggles to get her words out as she was too busy laughing. Tired of Swayam taking over, Vrushika somehow manages to sneakily get her hands close enough to Swayam's sides. Two play at this game Mr. Shekhawat, she thinks.

Now Swayam Shekhawat isn't particularly ticklish, except when it comes to his sides. Damn him for revealing that little tidbit to Vrushika!

"Okay, Vrushi -" Swayam tries to get her to stop, but payback's a bitch.

Especially when it comes from Vrushika Rai Prakash.

But their little dance, and then tickle fest, had gathered an audience, in the form of one Sharon Rai Prakash. Sharon heard music coming from the rehearsal hall, and was surprised to find her baby cousin with Swayam Shekhawat of all people. Together. She knew that Swayam knows her, but she had no idea that they were actually close.

She smiles as she watches the scene before her unfold. It's been a while since she's seen her cousin dance, or even laugh so freely. It was like a permanent scowl had been plastered onto that once always happy face. She was happy that her cousin was able to open up to people again. Swayam Shekhawat might just turn out to be good for her…

Just then, a voice breaks Sharon out of her thoughts.

"Ooo, they're cute."

Sharon turns her head to the side and groans when she sees that it's Shivam.

"Aw, Superbitch, I'm hurt," Shivam says, as if he's actually hurt. Not.

Sharon rolls her eyes. "What do you want Shirritating?"

"I just wanted to make sure that you wouldn't be trying to destroy that beautiful friendship that Goldilocks and your baby cousin over there are working towards."

Sharon glares at Shivam for even suggesting that she would ruin her cousin's happiness.

"I wouldn't do that to Vrushika!"

"Really? Then enlighten me Miss Rai Prakash, what makes this so different from all those other friendships you've probably destroyed?"

Sharon turns her attention back to Swayam and Vrushika and smiles. "He makes her happy. I haven't seen my cousin happy in a long time."

Shivam's a little taken aback by this. It was like getting a glimpse of the old Sharon. But almost as if she'd heard someone say the tragic words 'old Sharon,' her smile disappears.

"And none of this is your business, Shirritating."

Shivam sighs as he shakes his head. "Whatever. I just wanted to let you know that RDX sir approved your request for an ACS, and he's looking into potential candidates right now."

"But why did he tell you this?"

"Because he probably figured that you were busy, especially with Elections and Rose Day."

"Okay fine, whatever," says Sharon, wanting to get as far away from Shivam as soon as possible. "Now can you please leave me alone?"

"Um, one, I don't take orders from you. Two, I do what I want. And three, I'm not exactly stopping you from leaving now, am I?"

Sharon looks like she's about to strangle Shivam at this point. "You- ugh! Go to hell!"

"I'm already here, Superbitch!" he calls after Sharon as she marches away angrily. He is met with Sharon sticking her middle finger up at him from behind as she walks away.

Shivam simply smirks. He turns his attention back to Swayam and Vrushika. "This should be interesting..."

* * *

"Whoever you are, scram. I want to be alone," snaps Kriya, as she hears someone enter the fire escape. She's been in there every chance she gets ever since her fight with Taani a week ago. It was her thinking place, where she could just... be alone.

"That's a great way to win votes," she hears a familiar male voice say from behind her. She turns her head, and smiles when she sees Rey walking down the steps to sit beside her.

"Hello Mr. Competitor," Kriya says teasingly.

"Hello Mrs. Competitor," says Rey, wiggling his eyebrows.

"Miss, not Mrs. Otherwise I'd be your wife, and I don't think either of us wants that."

"No, we do not."

Rey then asks, "So, I take it you're having issues with someone who's not okay with you running for GS as well?"

"Is it that obvious?"

"Kinda." Kriya places her forehead on her knees, groaning once again.

"That's attractive." Kriya snaps her head up, giving Rey a death glare, but unfortunately, he's already gotten used to those.

Nonetheless, he holds up his hands in mock surrender. "Sorry."

Kriya sighs. "No, I'm sorry. I'm just on edge."

"Hey, I get it," Rey says softly, trying to comfort her. "I'm a little on edge too."

"Saara?"

"That obvious?"

"Well, she keeps giving you her disapproving mom looks, I swear she's been taking lessons from Taani, and you kind of look like a lost puppy." Rey groans out loud, which causes Kriya to quickly add, "At least you look adorable! You know, lost puppy and whatnot."

"Thanks."

"So, why is Saara against you running for GS? I mean, she's always very supportive of her loved ones."

"Not this time. She thinks that I'm doing this for all the wrong reasons."

"Alright, then what's your 'wrong' reason? Why are you running for GS?"

Rey sighs. "I want to run for GS to prove to everyone that I can be more than just the popular guy. I want to prove that I can be a responsible person, and that I'm not as irresponsible and lazy as everyone thinks I am."

"What's wrong with that?" asks Kriya, confused as to how that could be a problem.

"Well, Saara thinks that's not a good enough reason for me to run, and that running for GS just to prove a point is too big of a risk to take. She says she knows that I can be a responsible person, just not as GS."

"See, Taani's the same way. She also thinks that me running for GS just to prove a point is too big of a risk to take."

"What kind of point are you trying to prove?"

"I want to prove to Sharon that I can win," Kriya says sheepishly.

"That seems justified," remarks Rey, causing Kriya to dramatically exclaim "Thank you!"

"But there's something else, isn't there?" asks Rey. He takes Kriya's silence as a yes. "Does Taani not think that you can do this, or..."

"She knows that I can do this, she told me so herself, but she also knows that dance is always going to be more important to me than anything else, and multi-tasking isn't exactly one of my strong suits."

"Aka, she doesn't want the college to have to suffer because she knows you'll always put Footloose, and more importantly dance, first."

"Bingo!"

"But that's still not it," remarks Rey, noticing the look on Kriya's face. "You don't care if Taani says she believes in you, the fact that she's not sticking by you is what's bothering you, isn't it?" Kriya's taken aback by Rey knew exactly what she was thinking.

"Well, you're not okay with Saara being opposed to your decision either," Kriya points out, not liking that her feelings are all out there in the open. "You need Saara! I've known her for years, and you for a little while now. But I can see that the two of you need each other in your lives to function. Saara goes to you whenever she feels like she can't talk to me or Taani, and you need her to have your back, otherwise you're confused and unsure as to what you should do."

"Just like you need your sister? Look Saara might be your best-friend, but Taani's your sister. I have seen how the two of you are with each other. You're more protective than I am of my sisters, and I'm sure both Nisha and Aashi have complained to you about how protective I can get on multiple occasions. Even though Taani's basically more mature than both you and Swayam put together, she's the baby. She looks up to you, and you like to set a good example. You don't like that she's not okay with this decision of yours, and that bothers you because it upsets the balance of things that the two of you have going on. You need Taani to have your back, just like I need Saara to have mine."

Kriya says nothing. She stays silent, and Rey lets her. By now he's sort of figured out that it's best to leave Kriya Shekhawat be when she gets sad. But not when she's angry. That's  _obviously_  the best time to irritate her!

"You know, deep down, I know that Taani's right," Kriya reluctantly admits, "but I don't care. I'm going to do what I want, and my mistakes are going to my mistakes."

"You're a stubborn one, aren't you?"

"Might as well be my middle name."

A beat later, Kriya decides to ask out of the blue, "You know all those crazy, irrational fears that you have, that maybe no one understands?"

"Yeah..."

"Well, that's what all my fear is like. Everyone those typical fears: the dark, heights, water..."

"Where are you going with this?"

"I have a slight atelophobia."

"Atelophobia? What's that?"

"Fear of imperfection, or simply not being good enough."

"I can see that."

"Really?" asks Kriya, scrunching her eyebrows together, curious as to what Rey's answer will be.

"Yeah, I mean, it's pretty obvious. You take perfectionism to crazy levels and you don't take loss or rejection too well. And this just what I've heard."

"I like things to go the way I want them to. I admit, it's not exactly healthy, but I've always just grown up feeling like I'm not good enough, and I don't like when I feel like that. I'm afraid of feeling like that."

"Sorry, I'm being weird, and totally oversharing," Kriya blurts out, when she realizes that she's basically reciting entire life story. "I should probably just go."

"Don't!" exclaims Rey, so quickly that Kriya forgot to blink.

"Sorry," says Rey, a little embarrassed by the way he just reacted. "It's just kind of comforting to hear you talk about your fear."

"How so?"

"Well, I have atychiphobia, the fear of failure. You've heard of people being scared of failing tests or not winning a competition, but I take that to extremes. I'm always scared of messing up and when I do, I can go a little berserk."

"Yeah, I see that. From what I've heard, you're also a perfectionist, and you can take your perfectionism to extremes sometimes."

"We are eerily similar," remarks Rey, causing both Kriya and himself to chuckle.

"But on a serious note, neither of these fears are particularly healthy," Kriya points out.

"I know, but I can't help it. I've just always been this way."

"Why? Why have you always been this way? And you might as well tell me since you've basically told me everything else."

Rey sighs and begins to tell her his story. "When I was little, for sports day, we had multiple competitions, none of which I won. And my grandfather was not okay with that. He's a competitive person, striving for perfection. He didn't like that I didn't anything. So he belittled me, called me a failure, told me about all these kinds of worst case scenarios about failures who just can't have a good life. My parents told me to ignore him, that it doesn't matter as long as I do my best and I stay happy. But that fear of what would happen to me if I ever failed had been implemented in my brain, and it refuses to budge. So I just started to try insanely hard not to fail, and I've never failed at anything ever since. And I don't intend to."

Once Rey's done, Kriya desperately wants to say "But how would you know that something bad is going to happen to you if you've never actually failed?" but decides against it. He's not exactly criticizing her fears, so she should give that same respect. Until she decides it's time to meddle, make Rey fail at something, hoping that he won't take it too hard, thus making him realize that there's nothing to be scared of.

Baby steps.

"What about you?" asks Rey, breaking her out of her thoughts. "What do you think caused your fear?" Noticing Kriya's silence, he says, "You don't have to tell me."

Kriya sighs. "No, I- I want to tell you. I mean, it's only fair since you told me."

"I think that my dad is the reason I got my fear. With him around, I never felt like I was good enough, and when he left, it just got worse. I thought that he was so sick of me always screwing up, that he just got up and left, and decided that I wasn't worth coming back for. I know that it's been years, and that I shouldn't let him control my life like this, but I can't help it. He's my dad! If your own father thinks that you're not good enough, then are you really?"

Rey knew that Kriya and Swayam's dad had left them when they were young. He never met the guy, but if he had, he just knew that he wouldn't like him! Sure he'd heard how Swayam felt about this situation, but with Kriya it was different. Kriya seemed to have been harder by her dad leaving than Swayam was. He wanted to tell her that her dad was wrong, and that she should stop letting his words control her life, but he couldn't. Everyone has probably tried to say that, and failed. He'll just let this go for now, and then later on, in his own Reyaansh Singhania way, he'll get her to see just how wrong her dad was.

"That was some pretty heavy stuff for a Tuesday," remarks Kriya, breaking Rey out of his thoughts. He turns his head towards Kriya, and notices that not a single tear fell from her eye throughout this entire conversation. What is this girl, a robot? He makes a note to talk to her about this as well.

"Well, I think that we both just need to blow off some steam," says Rey, getting up. "Watch this." Kriya scrunches her eyebrows in confusion, but then her eyes widen when she sees Rey do a flip off the stairs.

"Oh my god, that was so dangerous!" But then after a split second she decides to add, "But really cool! My turn, my turn!"

"Okay eager beaver, but this isn't gonna' be easy."

"I don't care, I'm doing it anyway," Kriya declares, getting up.

"Alright," says Rey, not sure she should be doing this.

Kriya turns to face towards the door, and does a flip just like Rey had done. Only she flipped too far back, and would have fallen down the stairs if Rey hadn't caught her by her waist.

"I told you it wasn't going to be easy."

"Yeah, but I did it anyway," Kriya says cheekily. "Besides, I kinda' had a feeling that you'd catch me."

"Wait, why?"

"What, you thought that Taani wouldn't tell me about how the two of you met? I know you Mr. Reyaansh 'Knight In Shining Armor' Singhania!"

Rey smiles. He likes this fun, teasing side of Kriya. It was different than her usual "I am a tigress, now hear me roar!" attitude. It was weird to see her smiling at him and laughing with him, but a good kind of weird.

Definitely a good kind of weird.

But as Kriya and Rey were having their moment, they didn't notice that someone else had been listening in on the conversation.

And of course, it was Sharon. She seems to be doing a lot of listening in on conversations today. But she hadn't heard the entire conversation. She heard what she wanted to hear, which was Kriya's biggest fear, and then she left. She got what she wanted, now all she needed to do was figure out how to use it.

Uh oh.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If anyone wants to know what inspired Swayam and Vrushika's dance, I based it off of a specific scene from a show, so if you just search up "Backstage - Sasha and Carly Duet," on Youtube, you'll find it.
> 
> Musical Inspiration: Game On, the Yu Gi Oh! GX opening theme song, Let Her Go by Passenger, Rhythm of Love by Plain White T's, Gives You Hell by the cast of Glee and Superheroes by The Script


	18. Snitches & Downright Bitches

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It is currently May 1st in this story, just thought that people should know. Happy reading!

_"Nothing can be mended by simply using threads and stitches, just like mean girls will always remain bitches."_  - yours truly

It was Rose Day. Anyone running for GS was trying to use this day to their advantage, to get people to vote for them. Rey was handing out roses in big baskets, along with chocolates and teddy bears just in case some people wanted something a little extra. Kriya was handing out small bouquets of roses, with little poems attached to them, courtesy of her brother and Shivam. Both groups had a nice system going.

With Rey, he was obviously the one handing out the baskets since he's the one that needs the votes. He needed to show everyone that he's a down-to-earth, friendly guy. So his charm and charisma were working overtime that day. Sharon was taking down orders, in case certain people had certain things that they wanted, and as usual, she was in scary businesswoman mode. Arjun and Nilesh had some music playing to keep everyone entertained while Vicky was going around the college, spreading the word of their little booth. Simmi, on the other hand, was trying to arrange the baskets to the best of her abilities. But even with Vrushika's help, it wasn't easy since Saara's the one who's good at this kind of thing.

Things would be so much easier with Saara helping. Not only would the baskets be looking better, but Vicky would have some help getting people to come to their booth, and Sharon wouldn't have to deal with a million people at once. But most importantly, Rey wouldn't be feeling like a part of him is missing the entire time. He needs his best friend's support, but he's just too damn stubborn to admit it!

Kriya, on the other hand, liked to do more of the behind the scenes work. Sure she said hi to people and smiled at them, but she was so awkward that it wasn't even funny. She's just not a people person. Aashi did most of the talking, bright smiles and all. Swayam and Shivam were writing poems like crazy, while Neha and Nisha were struggling to keep up with what all these impatient maniacs wanted. And Bharat was just trying to get the hell out of there!

Although they had a nice system going on, things would've gone much more smoothly if Taani was around to help. She would let her inner Jhansi ki Rani come out and tell people to calm down, and Bharat to get off his lazy ass and help. She would help keep things organized with her impressive organizational skills. But most importantly, she'd give Kriya that extra confidence boost that she needed at the moment, to show these people what an amazing GS she would be. Kriya might be confident when it comes to dancing, but man that girl is socially awkward! She needs Taani to ease her nerves when it comes to this sort of thing, and without her here, she was kind of falling apart.

And where were Taani and Saara you ask? Well, they were as far away from all this election madness as possible.

"Got any threes?" asks Saara.

"No, go fish," says Taani, as Saara picks up a playing card from their pile on the fire escape stairs. "You?"

"Ugh, take it," groans Saara, practically shoving her card in Taani's face.

"Sore loser."

"I haven't lost yet."

Well, that sentiment lasted for about ten minutes before a frustrated Saara yelled, "Screw this, I give up!" throwing all her cards on the ground as she gets up. "You win!"

"Told you so!"

"Shut up."

"Wait, where are you going?" asks Taani, as Saara's about to leave the fire escape.

"As  _fun_ as it is to get my ass kicked at card games by you," Saara begins to say, sarcasm dripping from her voice, "I'm going to go see how our two favorite candidates are doing."

Taani bites her lip lower lip at the mention of Rey and Kriya, but then noticing the look that Saara's giving her, she lets out a sigh of defeat. "I guess it can't hurt to go see how they're doing. I might even get a bouquet of roses. You know, in the spirit of Rose Day and not to help my sister and... that person that I'm sort of friends with."

Saara raises an eyebrow at Taani when she says "person that I'm sort of friends with." When Taani notices the strange look she's getting from Saara, she simply shrugs. "Well, what else am I supposed to call him? We're not close enough to be friends, but we're not exactly complete strangers either."

"I thought the point of college was to get away from teenage issues, not bring them along with us into adulthood."

"Honey, you've been eighteen for just over two months, and in college for almost a month. What adulthood are you talking about?"

"You're just jealous cause I'm over a month older than you."

"Yet your behavior shows that you're over ten years younger than me."

"You know what, let's just go get some roses and then end up having to give them to our brothers since neither one of us would have anyone to give them to in the first place," Saara says quickly, causing Taani to chuckle as the walk down to the main foyer.

"Wow, they're doing great!" remarks Saara.

"Yeah, awesome, let's go!" Taani says quickly, turning around to walk away. Saara rolls her eyes, grabs her friend by the shoulders and turns her back around.

"Nice try, but we're going over there and getting ourselves some roses. And maybe try to get Kriya to be less socially awkward."

"Fine," grumbles Taani, as they walk over to the booths.

When Taani sees Saara walking away from her, she immediately yelps, "Just where do you think you're going?!"

"To Rey's booth."

"You're going to leave me alone."

"I am literally going to be ten feet away from you!" exclaims Saara, as if Taani just suggested that she's moving to Mexico or something.

"But you have it easy! Rey's not even there."

"Exactly," says Saara, winking at her best-friend who tries to burn a hole in her skull by glaring at her as she walks away.

Taani sighs, walking over to Kriya's booth. "Hi," she says awkwardly once she reaches the booth.

"Heyyy" Kriya says, like a deer caught in headlights, once she sees her cousin.

"That was a very long hey."

"Yeah," says Kriya, her voice a lot higher than normal. "Can I help you?"

"Um, I'd like a bouquet of your red roses, no poem necessary," says Taani, giving her brother and Shivam knowing looks as they breathe out a sigh of relief.

"Oh, red roses huh? Um, are they for someone special?"

"Yeah, they're for the greatest person on the planet! She's been there for me through all tough times, like my fairy godmother."

"Aw, who is she?" asks Neha.

"Cause she sounds inhuman," adds Aashi.

"Oh, that's because she is inhuman," explains Taani, completely oblivious to the strange looks that she's getting from everyone. "Her name is 'Her Royal Highness, Queen Penelope of Asgard, the Third.' She is the most adorable creature on the planet, but she can also slaughter you."

"Who the hell are you talking about?" asks Aashi, extremely confused, not to mention concerned for Taani's mental health.

"Her teddy bear," Kriya, Swayam, and Nisha all say simultaneously. Choruses of "oh"s are heard amongst everyone present.

"See, now that makes more sense," says Bharat.

"Yeah, no kidding!" exclaims Aashi, breathing out a sigh of relief.

"That is literally the most adorable thing I've ever heard!" gushes Neha. Shivam simply rolls his eyes.

Taani, who notices Shivam rolling his eyes, snippily says, "Would like me to request for an ode to my teddy bear, or do you really want to continue with your usual 'I'm Shivam Dutta and I'm intellectually superior to all of you, therefore above all your nonsense about adorable teddy bears and roses' thing that you always do?"

Shivam stares at her for a good ten seconds before saying, "You know, you're literally Sharon Rai Prakash. Just without the dresses, the impractical shoes, the bitchy attitude, the devious brain... oh, and you have a baby face!"

Taani glares at Shivam before giving him a bright smile and raising her hand, saying, "I would like to request for an ode to my teddy bear!"

"Request denied!" growls Shivam, glaring at the others, as if daring them to go against him.

"Actually," Kriya begins to say, "request accepted."

"Ha!" Taani yells in Shivam's face before Kriya could even get a word in.

Kriya ignores her and says "Bhai, you're writing an ode to Taani's teddy bear. Have fun!"

Swayam groans as Shivam triumphantly yells "Ha!" in Taani's face, before turning around to help some other people.

Taani doesn't seem upset though. She simply smiles at her cousin and says, "Those were some mad negotiating skills!" before turning towards Swayam and telling him to forget about the poem. Kriya smiles as she watches her cousin go. A truce is better than freezing each other out. It's not as great as making up, but it's something right?

Meanwhile, Saara was checking out Rey's booth, and she was impressed. "You guys really went all out," she remarks, as she tries to fix some of the baskets. She can't help it, the girl has an eye for art!

"Yeah, it's a shame we didn't have more help," says Arjun, giving his twin the famous 'stop being stubborn' look.

Saara ignores him. "Where's Rey? Isn't  _he_ the one that's actually running?"

" _He_  has gone to get some more baskets from the locker room," explains Sharon, giving Saara that same look that Arjun was giving her.

"Can I just- get one of the stupid baskets and leave?" exclaims Saara, not wanting to have to deal with her siblings trying to convince her that she's being an idiot. Sharon rolls her eyes and hands her cousin one of the baskets.

"And don't tell Rey I stopped by!" she adds, before leaving in a huff.

She meets back up with Taani and who immediately takes note of her expression. "Uh oh, you have that pouty look on your face."

"Pouty look, what pouty look?" stammers Saara.

Taani rolls her eyes as if to say, 'are you really going to try to lie to me?' but chooses to leave it at that.

"I take it that even though Rey wasn't there, your little visit wasn't exactly the best?"

Saara sighs and nods her head. "What about you?"

Taani turns back to look at her cousin. "I think we might've called a truce."

"A truce? Did you do the teddy bear thing again?"

Taani knows exactly what her best-friend is referring to. Ever since they got their favorite stuffed animals from Swayam, during their first Raksha Bandhan, the two girls had a teddy bear agreement. Whenever they were mad at each other, and one of them wanted to let the other know that they were willing to call a truce of sorts, they would bring up their favorite stuffed animal. Taani just added a compliment in to ease her cousin's nerves.

"Yes, I did the teddy bear thing again."

"Damn, I wish me and my siblings could have something like that… of course none of them would ever agree to a teddy bear agreement, but it would be nice." Taani chuckles, shaking her head. She then notices Sharon walk over to Kriya, and narrows her eyes at them.

This can't be good.

"Nice work Kripa," Sharon tells her, "I'm actually impressed by how well you've been doing during your campaign."

"Um, thanks?" Kriya says awkwardly, although it comes out as more of a question since she's not exactly sure what to make of this.

"I'm actually not even that surprised. I've heard that you're quite the perfectionist."

Kriya sighs. "What do you want Sharon? And where exactly are you going with this?"

"I'm just stating the facts," Sharon says innocently, throwing her arms up in the in surrender. "No need to get aggressive."

"Um, if your version of being 'aggressive' is someone very tiredly asking you a question, then you and I have very different versions of aggressive," says Kriya, shoving past her. Kriya then turns back around and says, "Oh and the by the way, if this you thought that was aggressive, then honey you are  _not_  going to survive out there in that cruel cruel world."

"Well neither are you!" snaps Sharon, smirking on the inside as her plan is going perfectly.

"What are you talking about?" asks Kriya, clearly tired and confused.

"I'm talking about how you don't take rejection well."

"Who told you that?" asks Kriya, suddenly becoming a little nervous.

"No one. I was just doing some research on the competition when I found some very interesting things about you."

"What  _things_?" asks Kriya, folding her arms across her chest.

"Like how you were at a dance competition a while back, and when you got second place you threw a hissy fit backstage," says Sharon, causing Kriya's face to go pale.

She wasn't kidding when she told Rey that she doesn't take rejection well. She's not proud of a lot of the things that she's done whenever she hasn't won something, or simply did really bad on a test. It's a serious problem, she knows that, but she doesn't know how to deal with it.

Aashi, noticing the look on Kriya's face, glares at Sharon and firmly says, "That's enough, Sharon! Stop bothering Kriya and go focus on Rey's campaign. And by the way, what you're doing right now is only going to hurt Rey's campaign. Targeting Kriya like this will not work in your favor."

Sharon simply ignores her former friend and continues. "I also heard that you once failed a major exam, and they only let you retake it because apparently you threatened the teacher."

Okay, that's only partly true. Yes, Kriya was beyond upset over failing that exam. But she was only able to retake because the teacher felt sorry for her and noticed how much pressure Kriya put on herself. No one else understood that, so they started spreading rumors as to what happened, which Taani and Saara quickly shut down. Most people had forgotten about it by now, but Sharon bringing all these past incidents up was making them remember.

"Di, stop it!" yells Saara, coming in front of Kriya. Noticing the blank look on Kriya's face, she furiously glares at her cousin. "This is Kriya's personal business which you should not be involved in!" she hisses at her cousin. "Just walk away now, before I do something I regret." Sharon's taken aback by the way her cousin was speaking to her. She wasn't used to seeing Saara this angry or protective over someone.

"I'm just letting the people know what kind of a person their future GS, if they still decide to vote for her, is. I don't think that people want someone who's impulsive, immature, and lets their emotions dictate their actions, as their future GS. I know I certainly don't. If she can't keep her cool, then we are going to be having some serious problems."

Before anyone else can say or do anything, Kriya does the unthinkable.

She runs.

Kriya Shekhawat doesn't run from her problems. She faces them head-on. So when she of all people ran away from that scene, to say everyone was shocked would be an understatement.

Aashi glares at Sharon. "Are you happy now?! Satisfied?!" she demands, before running after Kriya. Sharon says nothing. Instead, she continues to look at Kriya in shock. She didn't think that Kriya would take her words that seriously. She wants to go after her but stays put. She'd probably make things even worse for the poor girl.

Saara's voice is what brings Sharon out of her thoughts. "That was not cool. This stunt that you pulled today, it was sick. I have never been so disappointed in you in my entire life!" And with that, Saara follows Aashi to do find Kriya, leaving Sharon hurt.

"Well that had to have wounded your pride, big sister," she hears Taani say in a tone that Sharon had never heard her use before.

She didn't like it.

"You just made an enemy out of me, Ice Princess. Which is too bad really. I would've made a much better friend." And with that, she goes to find her sister.

Meanwhile, Kriya was running, running like her life depended on it. Sharon had opened up lots of old wounds, putting her problems all out in the open. Kriya felt as though everyone watching her judging her. She felt as though if she stopped running, the world would end. She felt suffocated, like she couldn't breathe. She was on the verge of a breakdown, tears ready and waiting to fall down her face, and she knew it. She had to get away from here.

As she's running, she collides with a hard chest. She looks up and lets out a sigh of relief when she sees Rey in front of her. Obviously getting caught up in the moment, needing some sort of comfort, Kriya comes right out and hugs Rey.

Rey is a little taken aback by the hug. But seeing Kriya's current state, he couldn't help but wrap his arms around her.

"Hey, it's okay," he whispers softly, trying to comfort as he rubs her back.

Kriya brings her head up to face him and furiously shouts, "It's not okay! Sharon -" She stops midway when she realizes something. Sharon couldn't have known anything about Kriya's fear unless someone had told her, and she highly doubted that her brother or any of her friends would've spilled the beans to Sharon, no matter what the circumstance. So the only other person that Sharon could've found out about this from was Rey.

Anger floods Kriya as she pushes Rey away from her. "You told her! I can't believe you told her!"

Rey grabs her wrist to keep her from shoving him again and calmly says, "Hey, calm down. What are you talking about?"

"Don't pretend like you don't know! You told Sharon about what I said to you yesterday! Did me putting my feelings out there in the open mean nothing to you, or was it all just a ploy to help you win the elections?!"

"What?!" He didn't tell Sharon anything, and he has no idea how she could've even found out about his conversation with Kriya. "Kriya, I swear, I didn't tell her anything."

"Stop lying to me!" she yells, trying to get her wrists free from Rey's grip. "Just stop!"

"Kriya, you need to calm down and listen to me," Rey tells her gently, when he realizes that they've gathered a crown.

"I don't want to listen to anything you have to say!" she hisses at him, yanking her wrists from his grip. Kriya turns around to walk away from him when Rey grabs her by the wrist once more.

"Kriya wait -"

And that's when it happened.

Kriya swivels around and smacks Rey right across the face, not even letting him finish his sentence. When she hears people around her gasping and whispering, her adrenaline dies down and she comes back down to Earth. She looks around, running her fingers through her hair, suddenly wanting the ground to swallow her whole. She just wanted to disappear.

She snaps her head back to Rey, and almost feels guilty when she sees the hurt in Rey's eyes.

Almost.

"I really hope you're happy," she spits out at him before walking away.

Taani and Saara, who had witnessed the tail end of that exchange, Kriya slapping Rey, exchanged worried glances.

This was going to be trouble.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Musical Inspiration: Shut Up by Christina Aguilera


	19. Deception

_"Sisters by chance, friends by choice."_  - Liv & Maddie

The news about Kriya slapping Rey spread like wildfire; rumors were being spread, theories were being made, and people were being... people.

"I heard that Rey cheated on her with Sharon."

"I heard that she found him trying to sabotage her campaign. It was  _so_  immature of her to slap him for that. What a baby!"

"I think that Kriya's just looking for some attention. I mean, any kind of attention, even bad attention, is better than no attention at all, right?"

And that was just the tip of the iceberg of some of the things that were being said about this situation. Shivam had to stop Swayam,  _Swayam_ , more than three times from punching someone in the throat - because apparently it's more effective than punching someone in the face. Arjun and Vrushika had to convince Nisha that manslaughter will only end her up in jail, even if it is for a good cause. And Taani... well, let's just say that she had a less  _violent_  approach of taking care of things.

"Okay, where the hell did you even get a bag of ants?" Saara sends Taani a questioning glance as she opens up certain lockers in the girls' locker room.

"And since when do you know how to pick locks?" she adds, now becoming aware of the fact that Taani 'the good girl' Shekhawat was picking locks and putting ants in people's lockers. Not that they didn't deserve it, but still, it's Taani!

Taani snaps her head towards her best friend. "Jwalu, this is as passive as I'm about to get! So are you going to just stand there, or are you actually going to help me? And let's be honest,  _this_  is much better than punching people in the throat or plotting murder. More satisfying too... not to mention, legal,  _and_ has a better chance of keeping us  _out_ of trouble."

Saara sighs as she steps up on the benches of the locker beside Taani and turns to face her, pulling two paper bags out of her bag. "Whatever you say. But just so you know, we're adding crickets and worms too."

Taani raises an eyebrow, half amused, half surprised. " _Crickets and worms_?"

"Don't judge me  _ant_  girl!" Saara narrows her eyes at her best-friend who throws her arms up in surrender, biting back a smile.

Meanwhile, in the rehearsal hall, Sharon and Simmi were sitting in the 'Sharon Corner' in silence.

"What were you thinking?" Simmi finally manages to ask.

"I just wanted to help, Sims," Sharon admits, her voice small and soft, guilt evident in her tone.

"Shar, I know you mean well, but that wasn't right, and you know it."

"I know, I know! I just didn't think that it would have such a grave impact on Kriya." Simmi sighs, going back to being silent, but Sharon just couldn't take it. "Well say something! Anything! Weren't you the one who said that you'd put me in my place if I ever got out of hand again?"

"Yes, but this was an honest mistake -"

"No! You're supposed to yell and scream and lecture me until both our throats start to ache. You're not supposed to let me off the hook that easily!" Sharon starts blubbering nonstop, causing Simmi to put her hands on Sharon's shoulders and shake her gently, looking her right in the eye.

"Shar, enough! You need to realize that this isn't like the last time. What you did to Kriya last time was cruel and mean -"

"And this wasn't?"

"Yes, it was! But the difference here is that last time, you were being unnecessarily petty and a downright bitch. This time you were just trying to help your friend, and you weren't thinking straight. What you did before was on purpose, this was a mistake, one that you are  _genuinely_ sorry for and _freaking out_ over." Sharon, nearly in tears, leans her head onto Simmi's chest, and Simmi gently strokes her hair, telling her that everything is going to be okay. Sharon was finally calm for a while... until they heard a certain rough, 19 year-old male yelling from a distance, getting closer and closer, and louder and louder.

"Sharon! Sharon, where are the hell are you?!" Rey roars, marching into the rehearsal hall, murder in his eyes. Sharon's eyes widen like saucers when she sees him. She gets up, as Simmi shoots up like a rocket after her, refusing to let go of Sharon's arm.

Rey glares at Sharon as he makes his way towards her. "How could you to that? How could you completely humiliate that poor girl?" Rey's voice is loud, so loud that it echos throughout the rehearsal hall, causing Sharon to flinch, and Simmi to hold her tight when she notices the gesture.

"Rey, I didn't know that it was going to affect her like that, honest! I just wanted to help your campaign."

"So what, you didn't think that I could win without you playing dirty behind my back?"

"It's not like that! I just thought -"

"You  _thought_? Oh, that's just rich! You  _don't think_  Sharon. You do as you please and think that saying 'sorry I made a mistake' is going to make everything better, even though it's not. But I guess that's the one thing you and Baatcutter have in common." Sharon looks confused when he says this. "You both do things without thinking about the consequences of your actions. You brought back Baatcutter's worst nightmare, without knowing how it could affect her. Baatcutter slapped me because she thought that I actually spilled her secret to you. She  _slapped me_  in front of half the college. She is going to pay."

Before Sharon could say anything else, namely convince Rey that he's being crazy and this will only make things worse, Rey tromps out of the rehearsal hall. Sharon sighs, running her fingers through her hair as she sits back down on the floor.

"What have I done?" she says out loud, turning towards Simmi, who simply takes her place on the ground beside her, wrapping her arms around the shaking girl.

* * *

The name fits, is the first thing that comes to Kriya's mind when asked about the fire escape. For her, it's not just a way to escape from fire and get to safety like it is for everyone else, but also a way for her to escape from the world, from herself even. The rehearsal hall may be Kriya's venting place, but the fire escape is her thinking place, her fortress of solitude if you will.

Now, her friends are quite aware of this fact, and most of them know to not bother her when she's there. Except for that one friend who simply doesn't care.

Nisha Sen.

The minute the doors to the fire escape open, Kriya says, without even turning around, "Hey Nish."

"How'd you know it was me?" asks Nisha, thinking she'd been oh so discreet, as she climbs down the steps to sit next to Kriya.

Kriya turns to face her and points out, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world, "Because you are literally the only person on the planet that would come after me when I'm in the fire escape."

"Hm, not listening and not following the crowd... yeah, that sounds exactly like something I'd do." Kriya smiles at Nisha's word. Nisha Sen has different ways of making each of her loved ones smile. Kriya, surprisingly enough, is the easiest one of the bunch. All Nisha has to do is be her crazy, blunt, 'I do whatever the hell I want' self, and Kriya will smile, no matter how sad or upset she may be.

Kriya, ever so eager to hide her emotions, tries to seem cheerful. "So, what's up?"

"Stop it."

"Stop what?" Kriya starts bouncing her knee up and down, something she usually does when she's nervous.

"Trying to seem all cheerful and happy, which, by the way, you can't do. No offense, but you  _suck_  at hiding your emotions. I'm not buying what you're selling, Shekhawat!"

"God help the poor girl's scout who tries selling you thin mints."

"Cute. Now tell me what's wrong."

"Nothing!" Nisha glares at her, causing her to unwillingly admit, "Alright fine, everything!"

Nisha's glare turns into concern in ten seconds flat, waiting for her friend to elaborate.

And boy did she ever.

"Do you know what the sad part is about all of this? I was finally starting to like him. I was finally starting to understand Rey. I was finally starting to see what Saara, bhai, and everyone else sees in him. Kindness, compassion, understanding; he's good with feelings in a way that I can only hope to be. He wasn't that same cocky, arrogant guy that I thought he was, that I saw when I first met him. He was actually really, really sweet! He was nice to me Nish. He sat there patiently as I spilled my guts to him, he talked exactly when I needed him to talk, said exactly what I wanted to hear.

I honestly just thought that he was being genuine when we talked yesterday. No hidden agenda, no evil master plan... just him being a nice guy. I actually thought that we had something in common, that we'd connected, bonded even! I was telling him about my dad - and you know I don't like to talk about my dad - and then he started telling me something about his grandfather - god, what an amazing story! He is such a good actor, I actually believed that he was telling the truth!"

Out of Kriya's entire rant, the word 'grandfather' stuck out to Nisha.

"Bhai told you about daadu?" she asks in disbelief, knowing how her brother's feelings towards their grandfather are similar to that of Kriya's towards her father.

"What?"

"Did my brother tell you about our grandfather? Because the only people outside of our family who know about this are Saara and Sharon di. Bhai hasn't even opened up about this to Vicky or Nilesh, or even Swayam, all people he has known for years and years."

Kriya's body goes still when she hears this.  _Holy shit!_ she thinks.

Nisha, now noticing how her friend has basically frozen solid, starts shaking her. "Kriya! Tell me you didn't just go into shock!"

Kriya doesn't move a muscle, her voice starting to shake. "Are you trying to tell me that he was actually telling the truth? Did I slap him for absolutely no reason?"

First thing Nisha does, is let out a breath of relief. Next thing she does, is get angry. Looking at the absolute look of terror on Kriya's face, that realization that she had in fact, done something wrong, made Nisha angry. But not at Kriya, nor at her brother. No, Nisha was angry at the one person responsible for this mess. She gets up, causing Kriya to immediately grasp onto her arm, worried that Nisha was mad at her, looking up at her like a lost child.

"Where are you going?"

Nisha in turn gives Kriya a gentle smile, as she pries the other girl's fingers off of her arm. Her face then goes stone cold as she bitterly responds, "To pay Miss Sharon Rai Prakash a visit." She treads out of the fire escape in a huff.

"What the  _hell_  is wrong with you?!" Nisha's voice bellows throughout the echoing rehearsal hall, causing Sharon and Simmi to get up and face her.

"Nisha -" Simmi begins to address the younger girl, but gets cut off by Nisha snapping at her.

"Save it! Simmi di, I'm sorry, but this is about  _her_ , so please just stay out this!"

Simmi wants to protest, but Sharon holds her back. She deserves this. Sharon knows that she deserves what's coming her way, and she's not about to run and hide from it.

"How could you stoop so low?" Nisha demands, rage evident in her tone, fury igniting in her eyes. "Do you have any idea what you've done?"

"Nisha, listen -" Sharon tries to calm her down so she could explain herself, only in vain.

"No, you listen Miss Sharon Rai Prakash!" Sharon winces at Nisha's use of her full name. Nisha has never called Sharon by her full name. Ever. She's always been 'Sharon di' to the younger girl. Every time that Nisha would come over, the first thing she'd say was, "Where's Sharon di? I want to see Sharon di!" She didn't ask for Vrushika, or Arjun, or even Saara. She always gravitated towards Sharon.

But not today.

"You, are a terrible person. What you did, was cruel. I  _know_  that my brother had absolutely nothing to do with any of that. Do you know why? Because Kriya wasn't the only sharing her deepest, darkest secrets."

Sharon gasps.  _Rey didn't_ , she thinks,  _he wouldn't... would he?_

"I know what you're thinking, and it's true. Bhai shared the one thing he's always had trouble opening up to people about with none other than Kriya Shekhawat; a girl who up until a few days ago, he could barely manage to tolerate. But Kriya never knew that when she slapped him now did she? She just thought that it was all an elaborate scheme for bhai to win the election.

Two people who hated each other were finally starting to  _not_  hate each other. They were starting to trust each other and now, because of you and your  _stupidity_ , they're back to square one! And don't even try to defend yourself and say that I'm just over reacting. You  _know_ that I'm right, and you  _know_  that what you did was unforgivable! I sincerely hope that you're happy."

Nisha's about to leave, when she stops herself. She's not done yet, oh not by a long shot!

"I used to look up to you, you know that right? I thought you were this strong, brave, badass woman. I wanted so badly to be like you! But today, you made me realize that you're nothing but some pathetic bully who takes joy in making others miserable. Thank you for making me realize that I would never, in a million years, ever want to be like you. I  _hate_  you."

 _"I hate you."_  Three words, eight letters. They seem so small, like they'd have no effect at all, whatsoever. But they were three words, eight letters that just kept echoing in Sharon's head, even as Nisha left the rehearsal hall, haunting her as she sat down, curled up into the 'Sharon Corner,' and cried. Not even Simmi could comfort her at this point.

* * *

" _Who cares if you disagree? You are not me. Who made you queen of anything?_ " Taani sings to herself as she puts some tops on one of the display shelves at Dream. " _So you dare tell me who to be? Who died and made you queen of anything?_ "

"I don't think that's how the song goes," she hears her boss Rinni say from behind the cash register. "I mean, I'm no expert, but I'm pretty sure that it's  _king_  of anything."

Taani simply shrugs. "I'm trying something new."

"I could tell by the immense amount of anger in your voice. Mean girl problems?"

"You don't know the half of it." There was a certain tiredness in her voice, which Rinni thought was quite unlike the bubbly girl she was used to.

"Try me," says Rinni, crossing her arms over chest.

Rinni Shah is the coolest boss you'll ever meet. She just graduated from college a year ago, so she completely understands the struggle all her employees go through. Stress, parents, love... been there, done that, went through the 'let's wear all black all the time' phase. She's understanding, and always willing to help people out with whatever problems they may be having.

"So there's a girl in second-year at my college. Her name is Sharon Rai Prakash and she is actually the embodiment of all things evil."

"Wait, is this about that whole Dazzlers vs. Weaklings thing at St. Louis? Is that seriously still going on?"

"Wait, you know about that?"

"Yeah, I graduated from St. Louis last year. I was GS, and I was on the dance team."

"Lucky you. I still have to deal with that she-demon!"

"Oh come on, she's not that bad, just a little misguided."

"I don't care! She is a bully, and an all-around horrible person, and I just want to tear her hair out strand by strand."

"Yeesh..." Rinni feels chills going up her spine. "I'm assuming that song is about her."

"Hell yeah it's about her!"

Rinni pauses to think for a moment. "Okay, how about this? Instead of getting physical and violent, which is totally unlike you by the way, you sing this in public with her present."

"I guess it's not a bad idea. But the only upcoming public event is Rose Day, which is tonight, and I don't even want to go."

Rinni lets out an offended gasp, as if what Taani said is the most ludicrous thing that she has ever heard. "What do you mean you don't want to go to Rose Day? It's Rose Day! Dude, it is essential for you to experience this, otherwise, you'll regret it later on in life. You're a fresher yaar, you're supposed to be broadening your horizons, trying everything, and that  _means_ , going to Rose Day!"

"Alright, point taken. But I don't have a dress to wear."

"I'm sorry, what kind of an excuse is that? You work at a boutique for crying out loud and - OH MY GOD I HAVE THE PERFECT DRESS FOR YOU!"

Rinni, despite Taani's protests, drags her to the back of the store. She brings out a rack of dresses, pulling off a short white strapless one with a beaded top and flowing skirt, holding it up against Taani's body.

" _This_  is your dress!"

"Rinni, as sweet as this is, I can't afford -" Taani doesn't even get to finish her sentence due to Rinni immediately cutting her off.

"Girl please! You've been here since the beginning, when this boutique was just starting out. But you stuck with it, you stuck with  _me_ , despite the low income you made here back then, that you still continue to make now. You had faith in this place, and more importantly, you had faith in me. Without you around, this place wouldn't have gotten to the level it's at right now, so if you think that I'd actually make you pay for clothes here, you've got another thing coming!"

Taani smiles at the older girl as she takes the dress from her. "Thank you Rinni."

Something else on the rack catches her eye. A dusty rose dress that would look amazing on her cousin. Taani takes it off the rack and says, "I think I'll take this one instead."

"Take them both."

"Are you crazy? What am I going to do with two dresses?"

"Well, I know that you were going to give the second one to your cousin."

"Maybe."

"Just take both dresses, and promise me that you'll go to Rose Day."

"Alright fine, but only for you." Rinni does her signature happy dance, smiling at her victory, causing Taani to laugh.

Soon, Rinni closes up shop, and Taani heads home. As she walks in through the front door of her house, her maasi greets her with a smile and a cupcake. Taani's eyes light up at the sight of the chocolatey goodness in front of her, taking the cupcake from Smriti's hands.

"I love you."

"Are you talking to me or the cupcake?"

Taani's lips and nose are covered in icing as she tears herself away from heaven to say, "Of course I'm talking to you maasi. I mean, who talks to a cupcake?" She walks away quickly, eating away at her cupcake.

Smriti throws her arms up in the air dramatically. "I blame myself!"

When Taani enters her room, she sees her cousin and Saara laying down on her bed, staring at the ceiling. She sets her bags down at the foot of the bed, and lays down beside Saara.

"Watcha' you guys doin'?"

"Nothing much, just stuff," says Kriya.

"Cool."

"What about you?"

"Oh, same here."

Saara looks at both sisters on either side of her, and then screams in frustration. "Oh my god, this is ridiculous! Will you guys just  _make up_  already?"

Taani and Kriya say nothing.

"I will call Smriti Aunty in here."

Both girls immediately yell, "No!"

"Then talk."

"Fine. I don't like that Taani doesn't think that I can be a good GS."

"Taani, rebuttal," says Saara, tilting her head towards Taani.

"I never said that you wouldn't make a good GS! I just think that you're doing it for all the wrong reasons, so your heart isn't really into it, therefore it will never be your top priority and our college will suffer."

"Kriya, would you like to add anything?" asks Saara, now tilting her head towards Kriya.

"Well, the team could've helped me manage -"

"Except you've got too much pride to actually accept anyone's help."

"Hey, hey!" Saara puts an arm up in the air, glaring at Taani. "Wait to be called on!"

Both Shekhawat sisters look at each other, a devious plan formulating in their heads. They each grab a pillow from under their heads, and start to smack Saara with them.

"Guys, seriously?! Oh my god, stop!"

Once Kriya and Taani are done pelting their friend with pillows, and laughing their heads off, Saara triumphantly says, "Not the way that I was hoping for things to work out, but I'll take what I can get. Also, you're not done with the mushy stuff yet so just keep on talking!"

Taani and Kriya stay silent. Only when Saara elbows them both in the ribs do they finally make eye contact.

Saara's right. they're not done yet.

Taani starts off. "Di, all you need to know is that I love you and I respect you, and that no matter how much I may disagree with you, that will never change. You need to know that I consider myself to be very lucky to have you as my big sister, and you also need to know that I also consider myself to be very lucky because you chose to be my best-friend. You're my sister, nothing's ever going to change that, but you didn't have to be my friend, and you did. I love you, and that's all that should matter."

"Sisters by chance, friends by choice," Kriya croaks, feeling a little overwhelmed.

Saara groans. "Did you just quote that cheesy Disney show?"

Taani and Kriya both narrow their eyes at her, smirking. They lean over Saara for a hug.

"Guys I literally can't breathe!" shouts Saara, as she tries to push the hugging sisters off of her. Finally, Saara gives in and starts to laugh. Taani and Kriya get off of her, and soon, they start to laugh as well.

"Let's not go to the Rose Day party!" Saara declares.

Kriya nods her head in agreement. "I agree. Let's just stay home and have a girl's night."

Taani jumps off the bed, startling her best-friends. "You can't  _not_  go to Rose Day. It's Rose Day! And this is coming from me, ME, so you know that this shit is actually important. Now get off your asses, go wear some uncomfortable dresses and shoes that the devil himself made to torture us women, and cake on some ridiculous amounts of make up on your faces!"

Kriya and Saara exchange knowing glances. "You talk to Rinni?" they ask at the same time.

"Yes I did! And she's right. Rose Day is a crucial part of us growing up, so I really think that we should go!"

Saara gets off the bed, heading for the door. "If you'll excuse me, I'm going to go yell at Rinni for putting this ridiculous idea into your head."

Taani simply smiles brightly. "Where are you going Jwalu?"

"To get ready for the Rose Day party!" Saara calls out, excitement evident in her voice. Taani grins triumphantly as she turns towards her cousin.

"Get up." Kriya groans. "Hey, I did  _not_  just get you a new dress for you to  _not_  go to the party. Especially one that you're going to love!"

Kriya scoffs, but when she sees the dress Taani has in her hands, her eyes widen. "You know what, I'll even let you do my makeup," says Kriya, suddenly feeling more energetic as she sprints out of bed and grabs the dress out of Taani's hands.

Taani smirks to herself as she watches her cousin skip off to the bathroom to change.

"Knew it."

* * *

As Saara's ready to leave for the party, Sharon stops her.

"Hey! You look amazing, blue's definitely your color."

"Thanks." Saara tries to get past her older sister, only to have her path blocked.

"Um, your hair looks really pretty like that," Sharon tries, referring to the side-ponytail her cousin had put her hair into.

"Easy, breezy, beautiful, that's me!" Sharon doesn't let her cousin get off that easy.

"Are those my shoes?" Sharon tries hard not to glare at the fact that Saara had been wearing her shoes for all of five seconds, and there was already a chunk of sequins missing from the left shoe.

"Oh, these shoes? These ones right here which I'm planning to tear the sequins off one silvery eyesore at a time? Why yes they are! Anything else?"

Sharon sighs in defeat. "Do you maybe need a ride?"

"Nope, that's what my wonderful twin brother is for! Now, if you'll excuse me -"

"Stop! Look, I get that you're mad, but I need you to know that I made a mistake. I didn't know that what I said to Kriya was actually going to hurt her, I just wanted it to hurt her campaign."

"And you think that makes it okay?"

"Of course not! I know what I did was wrong, that's why I'm trying to apologize!"

Saara rubs her temples in frustration. "You know what, I don't even care anymore. You are just too much for me sometimes!"

"I'm your sister, Saara."

"Yeah, well Kriya's my best-friend, and you hurt her!"

"Are you telling me that your best-friend is more important to you than your sister, your own flesh and blood?" Sharon demands, now becoming hurt.

And when she's hurt, she lashes out.

"My best-friend  _is_ my family di! She is the most important person in my life! She is more important to me than you, than Rey, than  _myself_  -"

"Than Taani?"

"Yes!" Saara exclaims furiously, getting caught up in the moment. She gasps when she realizes what she had just said, dumbfounded as to what she should say next.

Sharon simply smirks triumphantly. "Huh, I always wondered which one of the terror twins you liked better. Guess I know now. But the real question is, do they know?"

"Oh my god, who are you?!" Saara was now furious that her cousin had the audacity to taunt her like that, especially when she was apologizing five seconds ago. "Because this person that I see in front of me is not my di. My di, is a kind-hearted, understanding, amazing young woman who is strong without being stealthy. But you, this girl that I see standing right in front of me, is nothing but a cruel, sneaky and vindictive bitch."

Sharon looks like she's been slapped across the face. But what Saara says next, surprises her.

"That is  _not_ who you are, you hear me? You are not some rich, entitled, spoiled brat who thinks that someone's wealth determines who they are as a person. You are above all that crap, I know that! So then why the hell did you create this stupid divide, huh? Separating friends and lovers, getting people to hate you! Does that make you happy, are you doing this for your own entertainment?

What you did to Kriya today, was unacceptable. Maybe you weren't aware of how it would affect her, but that's not the point. The point here is that the old you, would have kept this to herself and moved on. The old you, would've never used someone else's pain to her own advantage. I have lost so much respect for you today. I never imagined that I'd say that,  _ever_ , but I just did. You know why? Because the sister that I once respected is gone. And I don't want her gone, no one does! She just disappeared into thin air."

Saara places a gentle hand on her sister's cheek before continuing. "Di, where'd you go? Why can't you come back to me? I want my di back. Please come back."

Sharon stays silent. She isn't sure what to say. The helplessness, the desperation in cousin's voice... it makes Sharon mad at herself. But she can't be that person again, not anymore. That girl is gone for good.

"I can't," Sharon manages to get out, her voice cracking.

Saara stares at her cousin for what feels like an eternity, until finally, she just scoffs, shaking her head as she lightly shoves her cousin before walking away.

* * *

Coming to the Rose Day party wasn't the only advice from Rinni that Taani was following. She had a plan, a hidden agenda. She will make Sharon Rai Prakash feel like crap, and no one but her is going to realize it. That's the fun part.

"What's up Tans?" asks Nisha, arriving into the abandoned classroom that Taani had told her to come to.

"Yeah, why'd you call us all here?" asks Karan, crossing his arms over his chest.

"What are you up to?" says Arjun, rolling his eyes, knowing that this another one of Taani's schemes.

"Look Rockstar, I know that Vampira is your cousin and everything, but she was out of line, and I intend to teach her a lesson."

"Continue." He loves his cousin more than anything, but Kriya's his friend, and she's important to him too.

"You guys all know the song 'King of Anything' by Sara Bareilles?"

"Yeah," the other three say at once.

"Well, I was singing it at work today, except I changed the word 'king' to 'queen'? Rinni suggested that I sing this song at Rose Day, maybe get my frustration out."

"There's a but, isn't there?" asks Arjun.

"Bingo! I was thinking that we could sing our own version of Cruella De Vil instead because King of Anything is way too sweet of a song to be corrupted by Sharon 'the vampire queen' Rai Prakash."

"Devious yet classy," remarks Nisha, "I like it."

"And I also have another song prepared."

"Are you talking about -" Karan begins to ask, but Taani answers before he could finish, "The new one, why yes!"

Taani looks around at friends and smirks. "Elsa's going down. You guys in?"

"Oh, we're in," says Nisha, a glimmer in her eye, one that she gets right before a big revenge scheme.

Sharon Rai Prakash is not going to know what hit her!

Back at the party itself, Sharon gets up on the stage to announce the itinerary for the evening. "Alright everyone, first off, we're going to have a live band perform for us. Then, everyone will have a chance to mingle while our staff calculates the votes for Rose King and Rose Queen. After that, our band will be back to perform, and then we will announce Rose King and Queen. So first off, please welcome, Taani Bakshi, Nisha Sen, Karan Modi and Arjun Rai Prakash!"

Taani flinches at Sharon's use of her last name, but shakes it off as she follows the band on stage. Nisha grabs the bass, while Arjun takes the electric guitar. Karan gets behind the drums, as Taani sets up her microphone.

"Hey guys! This is our version of 'Cruella De Vil,' and if you don't know this song, what a sad childhood you've had," Taani says into the microphone, getting the crowd to laugh. "Hope you all like it!"

The song is a pop-rock twist on the jazzy classic, which luckily worked out quite well. The lyrics were edgy, but the band's happy, peppy demeanor masked the true purpose of the song - to get under Sharon's skin. If you look closely, you can see the death stares and jabs being sent Sharon's way, especially when the word 'Cruella' is being sung. Sharon's cheeks are red - from anger or from embarrassment, it was impossible to tell. But at least only a few people, namely the dance teams and company, were able to tell. Kriya and Saara could see that this song was directed towards Sharon, especially when Taani winked in their direction. They saw and heard the edge that no one else was able to, and to be honest, it was pretty genius. Taani flawlessly managed to get to Sharon without making a big spectacle about it.

"Since when is Taani such an evil mastermind?" asks Saara.

"I don't know!" exclaims Kriya. "It's like she and Nisha switched minds or something."

Once the band is done their performance, Sharon takes a deep breath as she walks on stage. As Taani's getting off, she whispers into Sharon's ear, "Don't hold your breath,  _Cruella_. We're not done yet."

Sharon takes a deep breath in and smiles, somehow managing to maintain her composure as she happily cheers, "Give it up for our band! Don't worry guys, they'll be back soon enough."

Once they're all off stage, they hi-5.

"We did it!" exclaims Nisha.

"I know! I can't wait for the next one!" exclaims Karan.

"I'll be right back you guys, just gotta' go to the bathroom," says Taani, heading out into the hall.

As Taani's about to reach the girls' washroom, a strong hand grips her arm, yanking her into the fire escape, the cold wall touching her bare shoulders. Her eyes widen when she sees that it's Rey.

"What the hell?" Taani was fuming, shoving him with all her might.

"Exactly,  _what the hell_?" Rey practically growls at her, invading her personal space. "Cruella De Vil, really?"

Taani rolls her eyes. "Oh please, no one outside of our group understood that we were directing the song towards your beloved Ice Princess."

Rey's hands move from Taani's arm to her shoulders, gripping them tightly. "That doesn't make it okay! What you did to Sharon,  _was not_   _okay_!" Taani winces in pain as Rey tightens his hold on her shoulders.

"Let go of me!"

Rey doesn't budge.

"Let go of me Rey or I swear to god I will rip your head off!" Both their eyes had that same stubbornness, that same anger, and most importantly, that same will to go to hell and back for their loved ones.

Rey lets go of her.

Taani takes a deep breath. She then surprises Rey by grabbing him by the collar of his shirt and shoving him against the wall on the other side of the fire escape, right across from the one that Rey had shoved her onto.

"You think that you can just  _yank_  me in here and treat me like a rag doll by asserting your machismo, while lecturing me on the fact that what  _I_  did to Sharon was wrong?" Taani pounds her fist against the wall, her eyes seething with rage. "What she did to my cousin,  _my sister_ , was wrong! She broke her! All her life, I have seen my sister struggle with her fear of imperfection, ages eight to right now, all I've seen her do, is struggle. She tries so hard to keep it all in, to forget about this obsessive need she has to make everything in her life be perfect, and that was not easy for her.

It took her the longest time to put all that behind her, and what does Sharon do? She brings it all back in. She opened Pandora's Box, and now my sister is, once again,  _stuck_  suffering through the consequences of that. Did you really think that I was going to let your precious little Vampire Queen suck the life out of another victim like it's nothing?! Hell. No! That is my sister, you hear me?! I will fight  _you_ , I will fight  _Sharon_ , I will fight -"

"Saara?"

"Yes!" Taani snaps before she could realize what she's saying. Taani looks shocked by her own words, taking a few steps back.

Rey smirks. "Guess blood really is thicker than water, huh?" Taani wanted nothing more than to smack that stupid smirk his goddamn face, but then she remembers that she's better than that. Instead, she takes a deep breath before continuing.

"Bottom line is, I will fight whoever tries to hurt my sister. I would anything for her; I would walk through a burning building, dive off a cliff and go to the deepest pits of hell - you name it! My sister means the world to me, and you  _drag me in here_ , to try and tell me that I was wrong to defend her? You can go play Sharon's knight in shining armor all you want, I won't stop you. But don't you  _ever_  dare stop me from protecting my sister, because if you pull another stunt like this ever again, I will end you."

Taani turns to walk away, only have Rey grab her by the arm once again.

"Oh my god, do you have a death wish?" Before Rey can fire back, the doors to the fire escape open. They both snap their heads towards whoever is at the door.

It's Karan.

"Is there a problem here?" he demands, mostly directing his sentence towards Rey.

"No, we're through here." Taani looks Rey straight in the eye. They stare down at each other for a few minutes before Rey finally lets her go. Taani walks up the steps, but before she leaves, she turns around and sneers.

"Actually, one more thing Rey," she says, causing Rey to look up at her. "I'm not even  _close_  to being done with Sharon yet. And guess what? You my friend, just might've made things a lot worse for your bestie." And with that, Taani leaves. Karan follows, but not before glaring at Rey one last time.

As Rey watches them leave, he screams out loud in frustration, running his fingers through his hair.

"Damn you Taani Shekhawat!"

As Taani and Karan are walking back towards the party, Karan stops them midway.

"What's wrong?"

"You okay?"

Taani smiles at his concern. "Nothing I couldn't handle. Reyaansh Singhania has not met my brand of crazy bitch yet."

"Oh yeah, then how do you explain the blood on your knuckles?" Karan raises an eyebrow as he grasps Taani's hands to show her the blood, examining it in the process. "God, what did you do, punch the wall?" Taani stays mum, causing Karan to groans. "Oh my god, you did punch the wall!" Taani simply shrugs.

Karan rolls his eyes. "Come on you trainwreck, let's go bandage you up."

"Hey, excuse you, what do you mean by trainwreck?" Taani demands as Karan leads her to the nurse's office.

Meanwhile, back at the party, the gang still couldn't wrap their heads around the fact that Taani of all people created that devious plan.

"That plan was actually pretty genius," remarks Swayam. "Still can't believe that Princess came up with that."

"Yeah, who knew Taani was such an evil mastermind?" adds Arjun.

"Aarav did," Nisha reminds them. "She was friends with Ruhi, remember?"

"Ruhi was a psychotic bitch," Kriya points out.

"Yeah, but she still managed to kidnap you, me and Aarav so that she could get us out of Taani's life," Saara makes a point to add. "It takes some pretty evil genius level planning to do that."

"Hey, I saw it coming," says Shivam. Everyone turns to look at him strangely. "I mean, come on, she's probably a better evil mastermind than Sharon, and I call her Superbitch."

"Yo, morons, I'm right here," Taani says from behind them, causing everyone to jump.

"Heeey Taani..." they all trail off awkwardly.

"Hey Krishnaji, I'm surrounded by idiots!" Taani says to the sky, sighing.

Sharon's voice grabs their attention. "Alright everybody! We've calculated all the roses received by everyone, but before we announce Rose King and Queen, let's call our band back up for one more song!"

The crowd cheers as the band goes back on stage. As Sharon climbs down the steps, she notices the bandage on Taani's hand.

"What happened to your hand?"

"Is that a hint of concern that I detect in your voice, your royal iciness, or do my ears deceive me?"

"I'm CS, I'm supposed to be concerned about everyone."

Okay fine, maybe she was just a  _little_  bit more concerned about Taani than she'd like to admit.

"Ask your best-friend, Cruella," Taani informs her, before heading on stage.

Setting up the same instruments they had for the previous song, the band is ready to go!

"Alright, now this song might be an odd choice for Rose Day, but it's an original and I promise that you guys will love it!" Taani exclaims into the microphone excitedly, getting the crowd pumped up.

This song is definitely edgier than their last one. Karan, Nisha and Arjun were pounding and shredding away, like their lives depended on it. This song was a direct hit towards Sharon, one she didn't see coming because she figured, that's not Taani's style. Wrong. As innocent as she looked in her white dress, Taani Shekhawat was the devil in disguise. Every little move or gesture was directed at Sharon, a few very insightful people, ones that are not in their friend circle, were even starting to notice. The thrusts of her hips and stomps of her feet; the winks she sent Sharon's way, and basically singing to her didn't help either.

Rey glares up at Taani, vowing to get back at her, to wipe that smug smirk right off her face. Sharon on the other hand, knew that she was getting her due. She'd keep quiet for tonight, but after that, she's going to be back with a bang!

Taani Bakshi is going down!

As Sharon gets back on stage after the band is done, Taani hisses in her ear, "Told you I would've made a better friend."

Sharon simply ignores her and tries to clap as enthusiastically as possible, getting the crowd riled up. She then says, "Time to announce Rose King and Queen!" Sharon opens the envelope and smiles. She knew it!

"Your Rose King ladies and gentlemen, is Mr. Reyaansh Singhania!" Sharon exclaims, clapping as her best-friend walks over to the center of the dance floor, bowing playfully.

"And now, as for your Rose Queen..." Sharon trails off.

Uh oh.

"Kriya Shekhawat everyone," Sharon says, trying to clap as enthusiastically as she did for Rey. A shocked Kriya joins Rey on the dance floor, smiling awkwardly at the crowd.

"You ready for our dance, Baatcutter?" Rey hisses, clenching his jaw and gritting his teeth.

"Rey listen -" Kriya begins to say to him, but he simply cuts her off.

"Save it!" He continues to glare at her as the music begins.

***Music***

Rey's hands slowly find their way to Kriya's waist, clutching it tightly.

Meanwhile, Kriya timidly wraps her slender arms around Rey's neck, trying to maintain a distance from him.

_Yun Hi Bewaja, Dil Mein Rahi Betabiyan_

Rey roughly pulls Kriya towards him, causing her eyes to widen as she looks at him in shock.

Rey gazes at her intently, his eyes refusing to look anywhere other than at hers.

_Ye Ishq Hai, Saanson Mein Hai Ab Jo Rawaan_

Kriya is so dumbstruck by Rey's gestures, all she can do is follow his lead.

_Aaja Ab Kaisa Sharmana_

They start to sway from side to side.

One of Kriya's hands drops from Rey's neck to his arm.

_Ban Gaya Main Tera Deewana_

Rey's hand makes its way from Kriya's waist to her hand on his arm, gripping it as if his life depended on it.

_Dheere Dheere Se Meri Zindagi Mein Aana_

_Dheere Dheere Se Mere Dil Ko Churana_

Rey twirls Kriya around.

_Tum Se Pyaar Humein Hai Kitna Jaan-E-Jaana_

_Tum Se Milkar Tum Ko Hai Batana_

Rey pushes her away, then pulls her back in, turning her around so that her back hits his chest.

They begin to sway, leaving Kriya trapped with no way to escape.

***Music***

Rey lets go of Kriya, bringing Sharon over to the dance floor. "A Rose King is allowed to choose his own queen," he says smugly, sneering at Kriya, leaving her all alone and embarrassed.

Just then, Kriya feels someone take her hand. She looks up, only to find that it's Karan. Her savior for the night.

"Well in that case, a Rose Queen should be able to choose her own king," he says, giving Rey the exact same look that he had given to Kriya.

Rey glares at him.

Suddenly, the music stops. Everyone turns to see Simmi walk on stage.

"Sorry everyone, technical difficulties," she says awkwardly, anyone with half a brain knowing that she was totally lying. "Please chat amongst yourselves while we get another song playing." Everyone beings chatting animatedly, as Kriya tries to get away from the party. Unfortunately for her, Taani, because she knows her cousin better than she knows herself, blocks her path.

"Seriously Princess? Come on, move out of the way!"

"Sorry di, no can do." Kriya's about to protest, but Taani refuses to let her get even a single word in.

"Listen to me di, I am not going to let some overbearing, domineering,  _caveman_ ruin your night. You will stay here, you will have fun, and he will choke on his own tears as he watches you have the time of your life."

"Did this caveman have something to do with the fact that there's a bandage around your hand?" asks Kriya, gesturing to Taani's wound.

Taani shrugs as if it were no big deal. "I punched a wall, Karan helped me fix my hand afterward. But that's not the point here! Get back in there, and have a good time."

"Wait, what are you planning on doing?"

"Don't even worry about it." Taani sends her sister an assuring glance before walking away. She makes her way up to the DJ booth, where Shivam and Nilesh are arguing over the playlist.

"Children, if you could please just stop your incessant squabbling for two seconds and listen to me, that would be much appreciated."

Shivam and Nilesh turn to give her identical, irritated looks, as if to say, "bitch, you for real right now?"

"You are literally a mini-Sharon -" Shivam stops mid-sentence when he sees Taani glaring at him.

"And 'm not allowed to say that name in your presence, am I?"

Taani shakes her head, internally screaming, "No, no and a  _hell_  no!"

"By the way, loved your performances tonight! You are a frickin' savage!"

"Thank you, I try." Taani playfully takes a bow.

"Okay Princess, why are you here?" Nilesh cuts in. He knows that Taani and Shivam both have every right to be pissed at Sharon, for their own very good reasons, but that doesn't mean that he wants to hear them bitch about his friend.

"First of all, don't ever call me that again." Nilesh takes a step back, giving her a slight nod. "Second of all, I have a song for you two, since apparently, you're both incapable of making this simple decision on your own."

As Taani cues up the song, Shivam looks as at her curiously.

"Why this song?"

"Because it's a nice, happy, romantic song, and if Rey ends up dancing with my sister and tries to pull that shit that he just did on the dance floor, he'll end up looking like a major asshole."

"Again, sa _vage_!" Shivam practically bows down to Taani, causing her to laugh. Even Nilesh looks slightly impressed by her, although he tries not to show because, you know,  _loyalty_. He hits play, hoping that the rest of the night goes off without a hitch.

***Music***

As the song begins, everyone starts to pair off.

Aashi and Bharat and Neha and Vicky are in their own, happy, blissful worlds.

Shivam offers his hand to Saara, Simmi had offered to take his spot and stay with Nilesh, which she politely accepts.

Karan convinces Kriya to head out onto the dance floor, as Nisha makes a big show of accepting Arjun's offer to dance with him.

Swayam grabs Vrushika out of the blue, causing her to squeal in delight, while Rey does the same with Taani. Except not as gently, and resulting in Taani pinching his arm.

Sharon, the odd one out of the bunch, ends up with some random guy.

_Shaayaron se lafz leke thode se udhaar_

_Bolna ye chahta hun dil se tumko yaar_

_Ho raha tha ho gaya hai halka sa khumaar_

_Koi na raha hai dil pe apne zor_

As Swayam and Vrushika dance together happily, Shivam and Saara watch from a distance.

"Have you noticed -" Shivam begins to ask, but Saara cuts him off.

"Yes. I really hope she knows what she's doing. Swayam's been in love with Sharon di for  _years_  now -"

"Don't remind me. Besides, Swayam would never hurt her. He's not that guy."

"I know, I just really don't want my cousin getting hurt."

"She won't," Shivam assures her, bringing his face close to hers for emphasis.

_Love me thoda aur!_

Shivam twirls her into Swayam's arms, as Vrushika ends up with him.

_Let me tell you tonight_

_When the stars are shining bright_

"Not happy to see me?" Saara teases, noticing the frown on his face as he doesn't have Vurshika in his arms anymore.

_Love me thoda aur!_

Swayam snaps out of his trance and looks at Saara, as if just noticing that she was there, who chuckles at him.

_Just take my hand in your hand_

_And then don't you let it go_

"Nope, just hoping that Rey doesn't do to Taani what he did with Kriya. I think I'll actually kill him," he says, looking at the couple in question.

_Love me thoda aur!_

"Get in line," growls Saara, as Swayam twirls her around.

_All I need is the time_

_When I promise that you'll be mine_

Meanwhile, Vrushika was actually enjoying her time with Shivam.

Until he says, "You have feelings for Swayam."

_Love me thoda aur!_

Vrushika's eyes go wide as her cheeks become bright red.

_With you by my side_

_I know I'll be fine_

"No, I -"

"Yeah, save it for someone who will actually buy your bullshit," Shivam cuts her off, giving her a knowing look.

***Music***

Meanwhile, the first thing Taani says to Rey is, "You're an ass."

"Well hello to you too." Rey gives her a tight smile.

"I freakin' hate you, you know that right?"

"Right back at ya' sunshine," Rey brings his face dangerously close to hers.

Taani scrunches her nose in disgust. "Ugh, get your dog breath out of my personal space."

Rey glares at her, tightening his hold on her in retaliation.

She steps on his foot.

_Teri baaton ki, pyaari si, meethi si, khushboo main leke... saath mein_

_Muskurata sa, neendon se, khwabon se milta hoon main toh... raat mein_

Kriya on the other hand, was lucky enough to be having a better time with Karan.

"You okay?" he asks, as they sway, with her nodding yes in response.

"What was that back there? The Kriya I know would've smacked that jerk silly!"

"Well, he did have the right to be angry at me."

"Are you seriously defending that asshole?! Kriya, you didn't deserve that!"

"Maybe I did."

Karan wants to say something, but next he knows, Kriya's flying out of his arms, as Saara falls into his.

_Yeh adaa hai nayi_

_Yeh adaa aa gayi_

_Tu jo mila_

_Kabhi na kiya tha_

_Khud pe itna gaur_

Karan and Saara both freeze as they begin to assess the situation.

Karan's arms encircling Saara's waist.

Saara's arms draped around Karan's neck.

Their faces close, practically nose to nose.

One of Saara's hands falls down to his shoulder, as Karan slides a hand up Saara's waist to grasp her other hand.

_Love me thoda aur!_

Karan spins her around fast, shocking Saara, as her back hits his chest.

_Let me tell you tonight_

_When the stars are shining bright_

He tightens his hold around her waist, intertwining their fingers, his head buried in her neck where she could feel his hot breath seeping into her skin.

_Love me thoda aur!_

Saara finds it hard to breathe.

_Just take my hand in your hand_

_And then don't you let it go_

"That was nice, what you did back there," Saara manages to get out.

"Yeah?" Karan whispers into Saara's ear, causing her to bite her bottom lip.

_Love me thoda aur!_

"Yeah," Saara tells him, as he turns her back around so that they are chest to chest, once again.

_All I need is the time_

_When I promise that you'll be mine_

He looks at her intently as he says, "I didn't do it for you. I did it for Kriya."

"I know that."

_Love me thoda aur!_

"Then what's your point?" he asks, leaving no room for air to pass between them.

_With you by my side_

_I know I'll be fine_

"That it wasn't fair for me to bring our friends in the middle of our problems, and have them choose between us. It wasn't fair to you."

***Music***

That's the last thing Karan hears Saara say as she spins out of his arms, and into Rey's.

Karan rolls his eyes.

"Jealous?" he hears Taani say teasingly, as he finally notices that she's the one that ended up with him.

"Hardly." Karan's eyes bore in on Rey and Saara, the latter of whom did not look too pleased at the moment.

"Knowing Jwalu, she's probably exploded by now."

"Point taken," says Karan, as he turns her around, her back against his chest, his arm around her waist, all in the most platonic way known to man. "How's your hand?"

Taani looks up at him. "Great, thanks to you. Should I be concerned or impressed by the fact that you bandaged my hand like a pro?"

"Little bit of both," he says, playfully sending Taani away from him before pulling her back in, causing her to let out the most unflattering laugh ever.

_Tum ho ya na ho_

_Lagta hai jaise ki ab tum hi toh ho_

_Har ghadi ho_

As Rey and Saara are dancing, Saara glares at him.

"Okay, you're mad."

"Oh, mad?" Saara laughs like a crazy person. "I'm not mad."

She looks him dead in the eye, digging her nails into his palm. "I'm furious you jerk!"

_Milta tumse hoon_

_Jitna main utni hi milne ki wajah... hai badhi_

"You have really sharp nails."

"Shut up!"

She then notices that Rey's looking past her shoulder, so she turns to see what he's looking at.

She smirks.

_Milne ki koshishein_

_Pyar ki khwahishein_

_Hoti rahein_

_Tujhe dekh ke hai saansein karti shor_

"What is it about Kriya Shekhawat that has you so mesmerized that you can't take your eyes off of her?" Saara asks, tilting her head.

Rey finally snaps out of his trance. "I'm not mesmerized, I'm pissed off."

"Liar," Saara deadpans, as Rey proceeds to spin her around.

Great, now he can't get his mind off of Baatcutter! Thanks a lot, Saara.

_Love me thoda aur!_

Rey's eyes widen as the girl in question dances her way into his arms, her eyes also widening when she realizes it's him.

_Let me tell you tonight_

_When the stars are shining bright_

Kriya immediately removes her hands from Rey's shoulder, as if they were on fire.

_Love me thoda aur!_

But Rey makes no effort to take his hands off her waist.

_Just take my hand in your hand_

_And then don't you let it go_

They just stand there awkwardly, not dancing. Just Kriya being super uncomfortable and wanting to get away from Rey, and Rey making it extremely hard for her to do so.

_Love me thoda aur!_

Kriya frees herself from Rey's grip and practically runs to find someone without a dance partner.

_All I need is the time_

_When I promise that you'll be mine_

It takes Rey a while to register the fact that Kriya had literally just  _run_  away from him.

_Love me thoda aur!_

He sees her back with Karan, his eyebrows furrowing.

_With you by my side_

_I know I'll be fine_

He watches as Kriya looks relieved to be dancing with Karan, to be near anyone that's not him.

***Music***

His jaw ticks. Why? He didn't know. Maybe it was anger, maybe it was annoyance, or maybe it was frustration.

Rey looks around at all his friends.

There was Vicky, smiling like an idiot as he danced with Neha. Could those two be any more obvious?

There was his sister, looking like the happiest person on the planet as she danced with her boyfriend.

Then there Swayam who... was dancing with Vrushika? And that too all happy and like lovesick fools?

Nisha was with Arjun, and they weren't trying to kill each other. In fact, they were being perfectly civilized. When did that happen?

Then of course, there was Sharon. Who was dancing with Shivam. That is a disaster waiting to happen.

Simmi and Nilesh were in their own world up in the DJ booth.

But where were the two girls who've physically hurt him? One of them, he wanted to talk to. The other, he wanted to strangle.

As the music begins to stop, Rey walks out to the hall in search of Saara. He looks around at her, unable to find her.

"Leaving so soon?" he hears the last person he wants to see right now ask. He tilts his head to the side, and groans. It's like the Universe was out to get him or something! There stood before him, Taani Shekhawat, arms crossed, eyebrows raised, smirk on her face, leaning against the wall with one leg bent so that her foot was touching it.

Rey goes to stand right in front of her. " _What_  do you want?"

Taani instantly moves her body off the wall, now livid. Her arms had uncrossed, both her feet had planted on the floor, and anger was overtaking her beautiful features.

She was out for blood.

"You have some nerve doing what you did to my cousin. You humiliated her in front of literally the entire college, under a fucking spotlight no less! You put her in this really uncomfortable position, and worst of all, you were out there treating her like some plaything you could throw all over the place! What the hell is wrong with you? She slapped you, you're pissed, I get that. But you had  _no reason_  to retaliate, that was just plain immature. I thought you were better than that."

"I had  _every reason_  to retaliate! She humiliated me by slapping me, and that too without any reason. She just jumped to a freaking conclusion and reacted.  _She_  was the one being immature, not me."

"Yes, but you know that she only did what she did because of what Sharon said to her -"

"Yes, what  _Sharon_  said to her, not me!"

"She made a mistake!"

"It was more than just a mistake! You have no idea what this is about, so stay out of it -"

" _What_ have I told you about staying out of things that involve my cousin? I don't do that. This involves my cousin, so it involves me. Plain and simple. Get it through that thick skull of yours."

They were raging, Taani and Rey. The two people who were mostly likely to not lose their cool, who were always known to be 'calm before the storm.' The good girl and the golden boy. The sweetheart and the hero. Always smiling, always helping... they were practically model citizens. So to see the two of them lose their cool was downright concerning.

Rey looks her up and down, and then looks her dead in the eye. "You look like an innocent angel, but you're really just a wicked devil in disguise. You may have everyone else fooled with your good girl act, right down to your siblings who like to refer to you as 'Princess,' but I can see right through you  _Taanisha Bakshi_. There's something evil about you. You're vindictive, vengeful, and downright cruel. You have that bitchitude that only a select few have. Even Sharon doesn't have that, and that's saying something."

Taani glares at Rey, fuming at this point. The nerve! "You want to talk deception with me? Then let's talk about how you pretend to be this golden boy, this hero. You say hi to people in the halls, you help them at every turn, you don't break the rules and girls fall flat on their faces for you  _without_  you behaving like Christian Grey wannabe. You think you have me figured out Reyaansh Singhania, but you haven't even scratched the surface of who I am and what I'm truly capable of.

But I do have you all figured out. You don't like to admit it, in fact, you are proud because you don't think that you're the following, but in reality, you are. You're impulsive, you have a temper worse than the werewolves on Twilight, and when you  _snap_ , you're like the Hulk when he's high on drugs. So yeah, maybe I'm a bitch, but I'm bitch who's in control, unlike some hypocritical apes I know who claim to be oh so mature and to think things through, but instead, they humiliate people for petty revenge and throw others around like toys."

Taani marches away from furiously and walks out of the college. Rey makes no attempt to stop her. Instead, he watches her as she leaves, knowing that he'd just made a new enemy.

Meanwhile, the Rose Day party was still in full swing. People seemed to have forgotten about the whole Rey and Kriya incident, and were just trying to enjoy their night. Sharon in particular. This night, this  _day_ , it's all been throwing major curve balls her way and to say she was simply tired would be the understatement of the century. And then just when she thought her life couldn't get any worse, Shivam Dutta makes his way towards her.

"You are a  _real_  piece of work, you know that Superbitch?" he hisses at her, keeping his voice low enough so that no around them could hear. Making a big scene out of everything was Sharon's thing, not his.

"Listen Shirritating, my day already sucks, so I don't need you, and your presence, and your face and your words making it any worse for me. So how about you just leave me alone, and enjoy the party."

"Shut up, because you're done talking. All you're going to do now, is listen." Sharon crosses her arms over her chest. This ought to be good.

"I know you've been having your loved ones come up to you and lecture you about how they're oh so disappointed in you, or how what you did was awful... blah, yadda, whatever. I just wanted to commend you for living up to your title: Superbitch. You gave that poor girl hell in the worst way possible, and the whole creating a misunderstanding between her and Rey? Nice touch.

Now you're going to defend yourself and say that you made a mistake. Except you didn't. You decided to use something deep and personal, something  _triggering_ , against Kriya, without knowing how it could harm her, and that is just classic Sharon Rai Prakash, and why you  _are_  the head bitch in charge. To Taani, you can be Ice Queen, Vampira, whatever. But to me, you've always been Superbitch, and that's who you're always going to be. Congratulations on living up to your reputation."

Sharon's first instinct is to smack the living daylights out of this pretentious, pompous prick. Shivam Dutta had annoyed the hell out of Sharon since that first day of school when he knocked down her castle that she made out of blocks because  _apparently_ you can't make castles out of blocks.

Imagination and Shivam Dutta are like oil and water. They don't mix!

Ever since that day, every single thing he has done has aggravated her at some point or another. No one can raise her blood pressure faster than Shirritating himself, or make her want to scream and shout and tear all her hair out. Only Shivam can drive her to the brink of madness where even having to witness the awkward sexual tension between Nilesh and Simmi seems appealing. He knows exactly the right thing to say to push the right button.

Like right now. And the worst part is, she didn't even have it in her to  _glare_  at him. Glare! Instead, she stands there as if she had just lost all ability to speak, aka come up with a witty remark, as she watches Shivam walk away from her in triumph. Because Shivam knew exactly where to hit her where it hurts the most. None of that stuff that Saara or Nisha have said to her about losing all respect for her. That hurt, yes, but what hurt Sharon more was the fact that Shivam came out and said that he had no respect for her to begin with. That's what hurt.

Sharon makes a swift exit from the party, heading to an empty classroom. She locks the door behind her and leans against it. She slowly begins to slide down, the thin fabric of her pastel pink dress unable to shield her from the cold, hard surface of the tile floors. She rests her forehead on her knees, never wanting to leave this place; this dark, cold room. This dark, cold room where she's all alone.

The fact that she's beginning to enjoy this depressing atmosphere and the loneliness that comes with it should probably be a concerning factor. But it's not. Because somehow someway, loneliness has become a comforting concept. Isolation seems like a nice idea too. And the more she thinks about it, the more she realizes that she'd rather live in the darkness than the light. A place where she could be alone in her cruel, evil thoughts. Where she could disappoint herself to an extent that she'd start doing the classic, crazy, evil villain cackle. Where there were no expectations for her to live up to. Where she could do whatever the hell she wanted and not worry about the consequences, something which contrary to popular belief, she does do.

But apparently a certain curly-haired, ridiculously tall dancer and self-proclaimed love expert hadn't gotten the memo.

"Sharon, you in there?"

"No!" snaps Sharon, immediately feeling bad because it's Swayam, and she doesn't snap at Swayam.

She  _never_  snaps at Swayam.

"Sharon, I just want to talk," she hears him say gently from right outside the door.

"What, you came to yell at me too? Go ahead, have at it! You can't make me feel worse that I already do!"

Swayam sighs. "No, I didn't come to yell at you, I came to tell you that it's not your fault."

Sharon remains silent. The difference between Shivam Dutta and Swayam Shekhawat was that Shivam knew exactly when, where and how to hit her where it hurts. Swayam knows exactly where to hit her again, but simply to take the pain away.

Sharon groans. "I was wrong, you just did make me feel worse."

"Listen Sharon, I know you. What you did wasn't right, but I know that it was a mistake because despite what you may want people to believe, which I'm assuming is that you're a cold-hearted bitch, you're not. You know when you've done something wrong, and I know you well enough to know that you would never let things get too far unless there was something really, really wrong. Like right now. You wouldn't have gone out of your way to bring my sister's deepest, darkest secrets all out into the open if you'd known just how badly it could hurt her. You have your moments, yes, but I wouldn't go as far as to say that you're nothing but a heartless bully."

Sharon continues to remain silent. She remains silent for so long that she's sure Swayam had gotten tired and left by now.

"I'm still here," she hears him say, "just in case you were wondering."

Apparently not.

"I could do this all night Sharon. I'm pretty stubborn when I want to be. I mean, come on, you've met my sisters." That gets Sharon to laugh, the first laugh she's laughed in a while. "Is that laughter I hear?"

"Shut up. And I'm fine, Swayam, really. Thank you for checking up on me."

"What are friends for? Are you going to come out, or stay locked up in there for a little longer?"

"I think I'll stay for a while. Goodnight Swayam."

"Goodnight Sharon."

But as Swayam leaves, he doesn't notice a disappointed pair of eyes following his every move.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, Taani's boss Rinni is the same Rinni from the show, just super OOC like everyone else in this fic. Also, in case anyone's wondering, the song Taani was singing in the store was 'King of Anything' by Sara Bareilles. The first song that the band sang together was Selena Gomez's rendition of 'Cruella De Vil,' and the second one was 'Hey Hey' by Superchick. The song Rey and Kriya danced to was 'Dheere Dheere Se' and it was sung by Shaan for some Indian TV show. Finally, the song that everyone danced to was 'Love Me Thoda Aur' from the movie Yaariyan.
> 
> Musical Inspiration: Hurricane from a show called The Next Step, Play The Game by Samantha Grecchi (also from the same show), I'm Your Friend by Cody Simpson, Smooth Criminal from Glee and Saviour by LIGHTS (the acoustic version)


	20. He Said, She Said

One thing Swayam Shekhawat could always figure out was when girls were mad, especially at him. Growing up with girls who didn't have any male friends until they were living separately helped with that. So after seeing his best-friend Aashi leaning against the side of her car, scowling at him, he knew something was wrong.

"Okay, you look mad. What's up? Did Bharat do something stupid, because kicking both your twin brother and your boyfriend's ass in the same night is a bit of an overkill, don't you think?"

When Aashi doesn't respond, a switch goes off in Swayam's brain. "Oh! You're mad at me. Why?"

Aashi gives him a biting smile, something which can only be described as a cross between a smirk and a frown, adding in a glare as a package deal. "Swayam, why are you so blinded by your love for Sharon that nothing else matters to you?"

Swayam's eyebrows practically skyrocket, his body becoming more alive, as if he had just been electrocuted. "What are you talking about?"

"I'm talking about you acting like Sharon has done absolutely nothing wrong. Even after what she did to Kriya, you're not mad at her. In fact, you console her and tell her that none of this is her fault -"

"Because it isn't -"

"It is!" Aashi hollers, moving off her car to step towards him, her heels only slightly causing her legs to wobble. "We all told her that she was taking things too far, that she was  _hurting_  Kriya, but her royal highness kept going. She saw the fear, the look of absolute terror, in Kriya's eyes. Kriya was on the verge of  _crying_. She doesn't cry, practically everyone knows that by now. But as usual, Sharon managed to do the impossible. She made the girl who doesn't cry, cry.

But despite that, she never stopped. Instead, she kept going. She kept pushing Kriya to her breaking point until she finally broke. So yeah, maybe she didn't understand the seriousness of Kriya's situation, but she had countless opportunities to end this, to keep things from escalating, and she didn't. Do you seriously believe that this still isn't her fault?"

"Yes, I do!" Swayam is quick to rife back. "You want to why Aashi? Because I know Sharon and I know that she feels guilty, that she feels ashamed, that she feels disappointed in herself for doing what she did. She is genuinely sorry, probably punishing herself in trying to push everyone away by lashing out. Taani was the one who took things too far by retaliating."

" _Taani_  was standing up for her sister," Aashi is quick to defend the younger girl, "unlike you, supposed 'brother of the year.' Why are you always so irrational when it comes to Sharon?"

"I'm not!" Swayam looks at Aashi like she was crazy for even suggesting something like this.

"Like hell you're not! You put her up on a freaking pedestal! You treat her as if she can do no wrong, like she's just so goddamn  _perfect_ , when in reality, she is anything but."

"I love her, Aashi." Swayam is unsure as to what he could do to convince Aashi otherwise.

"No, no you don't," Aashi states firmly, as if she were a speaking to a toddler throwing a tantrum. "You love the  _idea_  of her. According to you, Sharon is perfect, except she refuses to see it. You see someone who is broken in the most beautiful way possible, and all you want to do is fix her. You don't want someone to love, Swayam, you want someone to fix."

Aashi storms into her car, speeding away from Swayam, tires screeching against the gravel ground. Swayam Shekhawat's night had gone from okay to just plain confusing.

* * *

"Okay, what are we doing just sitting in my jeep?" Arjun asks Nisha as she shuts her door.

"Well, we seem to have some of our best conversations in here -"

"Don't forget the library!"

"Never!" A teasing smile adorns her face as she winks at him. "I just wanted a place for us to talk."

"Okay, talk."

The smile disappears from Nisha's face almost as quickly as it had appeared. "No one's asked you how you feel about this situation, about your sister being public enemy number one," she mumbles, feeling slightly awkward and nervous because this is literally the first time she's asked Arjun how he felt about anything.

Arjun unconsciously grabs ahold of Nisha's fidgeting hands as he begins to speak. "Part of me feels guilty about our revenge songs. I mean, she's my sister, my big sister. I love her and I care about her. The last thing that I'd ever want to do is hurt her. But Kriya's my friend, and my sister hurt my friend. So the 'friend' part of me feels proud of what I did." Arjun shuts his eyes, groaning in frustration. "God! If I'm being a good friend, then I'm being a bad brother. And if I'm being a good brother, then I'm being a bad friend. So what the hell am I supposed to do?"

Having Arjun Rai Prakash look into your eyes is like having him bore into your soul. Seeing his eyes searching for an answer within your own feels like the weight of the world is on your shoulders, and there is no way in hell that you'll be able to carry it. But despite that, Nisha Sen - yes, Nisha Sen of all people - decided to take a leap of faith and carry that weight, to let those eyes bore deep into her soul. Nisha places her free hand on top of his, and takes a deep breath before assuring, "You're supposed to do what you always do; whatever you think is right. You know why? Because I have only ever seen you do the right thing, and that's what I admire most about you. Always have, always will."

It was then, in that moment, that Arjun realized he had reached out for Nisha's hand first. For the first time in what feels like forever, Arjun Rai Prakash was at a loss for words.

"Wow," is the only word to come out of his mouth.

"Wow..." Nisha trails off, scrunching her eyebrows together, confused and unsure as to what Arjun could possibly mean, waiting for him to elaborate.

"Wow as in we're actually getting along. I mean, if I didn't know any better, I'd say we were friends."

Nisha is quick to say, "Necessary acquaintances at best," but rather than being upset, Arjun merely chuckles.

Nisha and Arjun... who would've thought?

* * *

Vrushika's POV

I finally understand why my sister can't stand Shivam Dutta in all his pretentious, know-it-all glory. What he said while we were dancing had me pacing around my room, mumbling incoherent words like a crazy person, trying to make sense of what could possibly cause Shivam to draw a conclusion that I, Vrushika Rai Prakash, am in love with Swayam Shekhawat. I mean, I can't possibly be in love with Swayam. We're not even close to the best-friend mark yet. He's just a friend.

A friend who I'm comfortable enough to open up to. To open up about the one thing I can't talk to anyone else about. Have I told him the whole truth? Hell no! But he sure as hell knows a lot more than anyone else in my life does. And besides, Swayam has been in love with Sharon di for over four years. He's only known me for a little over a month. There is no way that I'm in love with him, despite what Shivam 'know-it-all' Dutta says. And even if I am, there's no way he'd ever love me back. Me with my wrinkly old pink t-shirt and grey sweatpants which I've been wearing for four days now. Me with my cute but impractical - very unlike me - polar bear slippers which are so fuzzy and comfortable, but my feet are always naturally warm, and I'm a messy eater so you would think that I know by now that anything white or remotely pastel-like is not a good shade for me.

Now, where was I... oh yes! Swayam Shekhawat would never, ever, in a million years, love me back. If the jerks I've dated or fallen for in the past can't manage to love me back, then a guy like Swayam, an actual, genuine, decent human being, would never fall for me. I guess no guy can ever love me back...

Suddenly, I wasn't in my room anymore. I was back in Dehli, back at Royal Academy, back to the day my life took a turn for the worst.

_Today was the day. Today was the day that I, sixteen-year-old Vrushika Rai Prakash, was going to confess her feelings to Harshad Saxena, the guy I'd had a crush on since I first started going to this school over two years ago. This was my last chance. Harshad was a year older, so he would be graduating this year. After that, he's gone, and I would've missed my chance to tell him how I really felt... and there was no way in hell that I was going to let that happen._

_So there I was; hair I'd spent hours curling, makeup on my face that I'd spent hours making sure looked like I wasn't even wearing makeup to begin with, and a school uniform I'd tried to make as unique as possible with my accessories. I'd even worn the highest possible heels I could, without breaking dress code. This was a well-thought-out, weeks and weeks of planning sort of situation which may or may not have caused me to be either nervous, jittery, jumpy or all of the above. This was important. It may seem crazy and weird and like a complete waste of time, but it wasn't to me. I had spent two and a half years crushing on Harshad Saxena, and I wasn't going to let him slip right through my fingers without knowing what could've been._

_This was the plan: I'd meet him behind the school at around 1:45 PM, when we both had a free period before our last class. No one ever went to that spot behind the school, and that's why Harshad was always there, strumming on his guitar, humming tunes... it was a beautiful process which I appreciated that he let me be a part of._

_I fixed her hair and took a deep breath before walking over to him, the click-clack of my heels upon the gravel pavement gaining Harshad's attention, causing him to look up and smile at the sight of me._

_"Hey Vrushi!" he exclaimed excitedly, setting his guitar aside, making space for me to sit beside him on the bench. My face lights up at his gesture! It wasn't anything new, it just made this whole ordeal less nerve wrecking for me._

_"Hi!" My smile didn't leave my face._ So far so good _, I thought._

_Until there is radio silence. I started fidgeting with my hands, my mind a complete blank, all my planning going down the drain in an instant._

_Then Harshad, sweet, amazing Harshad asked, "Okay, what's bothering you?"_

_"Nothing!" I was quick to say defensively, my voice going up an octave or two._

_"Yeah, I think I know you well enough by now to know when you're lying," Harshad informed the deer-caught-in-headlights version of me sadly. "Also, you're a terrible liar."_

_I sighed. "Alright, fine! This may or may not come as a shock to you, and I don't exactly know how you're going to feel about this and I might just be making the biggest mistake of my life and I am so sorry -"_

_"Vrushika!" Harshad shouted, placing his hands on my shoulders to get me to calm down. "You're rambling."_

_I cringe, wanting to smack myself upside the head. "Right, sorry. This is definitely not going as planned, but here goes nothing! I guess there's really no better way to say this..." Harshad looked at me expectantly, prompting me to blurt out, "I like you! I really, really like you, and I have for a long time. I might even go as far as saying that I love you."_

_Harshad's bright eyes darkened at my words, but I paid no attention to that at the time. Instead, I simply continued. "Ever since my first day here, I've always been drawn to you. I was lost, and no one bothered to stop and help me. And then you came along like you always do; like a knight in shining armor, always ready and willing to help. You spent your entire day helping me find my way and right then and there, I knew that there was something really special about you._

_Every time I was in trouble, all I'd have to do is look over my shoulder, and I'd find you standing right there, coming to my rescue. You have the biggest heart out of anyone that I have ever met! Everywhere you go, it's like you're constantly making someone's day, someone's_ life _better. You are sweet and helpful and caring but what I like - no, what I_ love  _most about you is the fact that you always help the helpless. You don't let bullies get away with being bullies, you don't let teachers be unjust towards students and you always stand up for others. I admire you, Harshad, and I love you."_

_I breathed out a sigh of relief, feeling good about the fact that I had been able to get that off my chest. I looked at Harshad expectantly, my eyes filled with hope and the most nervous of smiles plastered on my face._

_And that's when it all went downhill._

_Harshad laughed, he laughed loud and proud and in my face. My smile faltered._

_"What's so funny," I asked, squinting her eyes in confusion._

_Harshad finally managed to stop laughing, looking me straight in the eye. "You love me?"_

_"That's what that big whole confession was about, yeah."_

_"That's cute." Harshad smirked, using a tone that I had never heard him use before._

_"Cute? I just poured my heart out to you, and you think that it was cute?"_

_"Duh!"_

_"Well then I'd love to know what you think was so cute about it!" I didn't want to get angry, I had no right to, but I was._

_"What's cute is that you think that I, Harshad Saxena, could actually be in love with you. What's so special about you, huh? You're average looking at best."_

_I unconsciously tugged at my hair._

_"You have these long, gawky, awkward legs."_

_I closed my legs together, tugging down at my skirt, cursing myself for even wearing heels in the first place, as if that would magically cause my legs to shrink, to become shorter and therefore stable._

_"No guy wants a girl that tall unless she's worth it. You're not worth it."_

_That did it. It was like a switch went off in her brain. My eyes became hollow, my body became numb. Tears wanted to spill but they couldn't. I was lifeless, simply sitting there as the guy I was hopelessly in love with, a guy I actually considered as one of my closest friends, kept going off at me._

_"No one likes you. You know why? Because you try too hard. You think that people actually like you? You, with all your smiles and waves and your incessant need to say hello to every single person that you pass by in halls? You're sickeningly sweet. That's right, you make me sick. You make us all sick. The only thing that you have going for you is the fact that you're a Rai Prakash. The littlest Rai Prakash. The baby of the bunch. Everyone prefers your siblings over you, probably even your own parents. You're nothing without them. No one likes Vrushika the person. They all want Vrushika the Rai Prakash. Poor little Vrushika. Always the last one chosen, always forgotten. That's all you'll ever be."_

_Harshad grabbed his guitar and got up to leave. I made no attempt to stop him and he made no attempt to look back at me. I kept waiting for him to come back and shout "April Fool's!" but he never did. The bell ringing, indicating that my free period was over, was what had finally caused me to come back to my senses._

_I couldn't go back to class, not after this. I couldn't sit through forty minutes of being surrounded by my friends and peers who would most certainly be chatting idly as the teacher attempted to teach the fundamentals of whatever the school board wanted us to learn but we would never use again after this one class._

_I took off her heels and ran as fast I could, the hot pavement burning my feet and the rocks digging into my skin were like the gazelle to my desperate need to get home's lion. Nothing else mattered. Not school, not the people that were staring at me on the road, and then later on when I was on the bus, and not even my baffled servants as I sped towards my room, locking the door behind me, refusing to come out. I just sat there, hugging my legs tight. My forehead had practically become one with my knees at that point, but I didn't care._

_I let out the loudest, ugliest cries imaginable, not caring about the makeup running down my face. I should be quiet and clean myself up, but I didn't. Because I didn't care, in fact, I didn't give a crap. Let my hair be in tangles from me pulling at it! Let my face look like a Crayola box containing only black crayons just threw up on me! Let my feet be covered with blisters, burning hot and hurting like hell! I, Vrushika Rai Prakash, was done caring._

_I was done giving a crap._

One year. It's been one year since my life turned upside down because of Harshad Saxena, yet I still remember exactly what he said to me, word for word. I can't get it out of my head; it just keeps playing on a loop, repeating itself,  _mocking me_! Harshad's words made me go insane. It was as if the game Twenty Questions had decided to be an overachiever and then make my mind its own personal playing field.

Why would Harshad say that to me?

How could he be so cruel?

Does everyone else feel that way too?

Do people secretly hate me for being me, but don't say anything because I'm a Rai Prakash?

Am I not as good as my cousins?

Will I ever be as good as my cousins?

Is Harshad right about everything?

And that was just the tip of the iceberg. I shut everyone out after that, nothing made sense to me anymore. The only thing that made it bearable was the fact that Harshad had graduated, that he was gone. He'd never know how big of an impact his words had on my life, and I'm more than happy for it to stay that way. I don't need him knowing that his words actually had an effect on me, that they still affect me.

I walk over to my vanity table, which was in the top right corner of my room, right beside my window. I look into the simple, yet very fragile and expensive - thanks mom -circular mirror, my attention focused on my face and hair. Well this brings back memories. At least I'm not wearing ridiculous amounts of makeup this time around.

I run my fingers through my long, straight hair. My hair is naturally straight, and I'd spent years trying to make it as long as it is now. My big sister Anya had curly hair, perfect in every way possible. All three of my cousins - Sharon di, Saara, and Naina - have curly hair too. It's a Rai Prakash family trait... for the women at least.

"Well apparently it skipped a generation," I grumble bitterly. I used to curl it to make it look nice like my sister and my cousins' hair always did, and not all stringy like mine always were. Perfection is key; that's what my motto was. Not anymore. After that day, I just let my hair do whatever. Other than washing or brushing it, the latter of which I sometimes didn't even bother to do, I did absolutely nothing to my hair. My hair was still a little curly since I'd curled it so much, but that wasn't a big deal. Until a few months later, right when school started back up.

I decided that I didn't want to be like my cousins, I wanted to be me. I wanted to be Vrushika, not a Rai Prakash. So I tried my best to get rid of all the curls that remained in my hair and chose to start wearing the regulation sweatpants instead of the skirt I'd been wearing for three years. I wanted to blend in, to fade into the background and become invisible. I resigned as head girl, quit every single club that I was a part of - and believe me there were a lot! I stopped talking to all my friends, always asked to work alone for school projects. 'Isolation is key' was my new motto that year. After all, isolation is the new perfection.

I was doing just fine until tonight! I should've never danced with Shivam in the first place! I should've just walked away awkwardly the minute I was in his arms. Would I have felt like a total jerk? Yes. But would I be in this situation right now, taking a walk down memory lane and watching everything I've worked so hard to build crumble right before my eyes? No!

I let out a deep sigh, tired of doing this same song and dance over and over with myself. Pushing my thoughts away didn't work, and neither did changing my personality. So what now?

I open the drawer to my vanity table, with every intention of occupying myself with organizing the items within.

Dear lord, I've become Sharon di.

I was actually starting calm down a little until... until the shining blades of a pair of scissors catch my eye. I pick them up, staring at them as if I've just discovered the Holy Grail. I hold out a strand of my hair, ready to work my magic, ready to start over... again.

Just as I'm about to begin snipping away, I stop myself. I shouldn't be doing this. Isn't cutting your hair while you're emotionally overwhelmed a bad thing? Like that super over the top crap that you see on TV, which eventually leads to a depression and then later on suicide track? Nooo, nope, uh uh, no way, no can do, ain't gonna' happen. I am better than that. I'm not going to be one of those girls I've seen cut their hair off in a fit of rage. That never ends well.

Instead, I walk out of my room, scissors in hand, and see my di walk in through the main entrance.

"Di!" I call out to her from upstairs.

"Hey Vrushi." Her voice sounds small, tired.

"Can you do me a huge favor?"

"Yeah, sure. Whatever you want," my sister is quick to say, taking off her heels and walking upstairs towards. "But can you tell me where Saara is first?"

"She's in her room binging on food."

"Okay, that's a relief! So what do you need?"

I hold out my scissors towards her. "Can you cut my hair?"

This is better. This is healthier. This will ensure that I don't hurt myself and my life doesn't tumble further into the deepest pits of hell... right?

* * *

Saara's POV

I walk into my room, trying to stomp around like an obnoxious toddler... except I'm wearing comfy unicorn slippers which obviously make no sound,  _and_ my room is carpeted so there goes that plan!

I dump all the food in my hands on my bed, half expecting Sharon di's 'spidey senses' to start tingling and come tell me to clean up this mess before she sends pictures to my mom. She'd come equipped with one of those mini vacuum cleaners and everything! But given the circumstances, that doesn't seem likely.

I quickly throw my hair into a messy ponytail, kicking my slippers off my feet and bouncing onto my bed. Thank god I put on my fuzzy socks! Otherwise, my feet would've frozen off by now. Unlike my cousin Vrushika, my feet are always cold, so I need a carpeted room, comfy slippers, fuzzy socks, and the thickest blanket known to man, woman, and animal. So what exactly possessed me to put my bed right next to the window? Eh, whatever. I'm too lazy to figure how my brain works.

"Let's see... salty pretzels, extra buttery popcorn, ginormous soft-baked chocolate chip cookies and an entire apple pie," I list off all the snack items that I had just thrown on my bed. "Now what am I forgetting? Oh right, peanut butter!" I lean down and find a half-eaten jar of peanut butter beside my bed.

Yes, I keep peanut butter beside my bed. Judge away, I have no shame!

"I keep thinking that I'm forgetting something else," I mutter to myself.

Just then, my twin brother Arjun opens the door to my room - because heaven forbid that he actually knocks for once - and says, "Your order's here."

That's right! I can't believe I almost forgot about that.

"Is everything there?" This is an extremely crucial, monumental moment in my life.

"Um, there's regular pizza, bubble pizza, hot buffalo wings and cheesy garlic bread."

"Bring it in!"

Yes, pizza counts as part of an extremely crucial, monumental moment in one's life. Get with the program people!

"No fries?"

"Nah, I'm cutting down on the carbs." Arjun gives me the strangest look, as if I'd magically turned into a stable, grown young woman. Only in our parents' dreams…

"Okay, so are you going to get up and pay the nice dude who has been patiently waiting for you to pay up any day now?"

"Don't sass me!" I snap, my mouth full of popcorn. "Also, can you please pay the delivery guy because I'm really comfy here and I don't want to move and I love you? And no, you can't just get the money from my wallet because I don't trust you - and hey! Did I mention I love you to Pluto and back?"

"Pluto's not a planet anymore."

"It's still out there in space!"

Arjun groans but gives. "You owe me."

"I'll pay you back."

"No, you  _owe_  me!"

"You're not getting any of this food."

"It's a lot for just one person -"

"It's  _my_   _food_!"

Arjun throws his arms up in the air in frustration, slamming the door behind him as he leaves. God, he is such a drama queen! He's probably ranting about me to that poor delivery boy. Hey Bhagwan, please protect that poor boy's innocent soul from my crazy twin... otherwise he'll be too scared to make deliveries here anymore.

I shake my head as I get out my box set of six Tinkerbell movie DVDs - yes I still watch Tinkerbell, and I am proud mis amigos!

And then last but not least, I take out Sharon di's most prized bottle of vodka, which I had stolen from her and stashed under my bed.

Yes, I have vodka stashed under my bed.

Yes, I am going to drink alcohol while marathoning a series of kids' movies.

Yes, I'm a freak, and I'm not afraid to let my freak flag fly!

I begin to dip pretzels and cookies into the jar of peanut butter as I waited for the first movie to start. It was going great. I wasn't thinking about anything that was going on in my life. It was just me, food, alcohol and Tinkerbell. The dream team.

Until my idiot best-friend decided to barge in through my window - seriously, why do the men in my life literally have like no manners? That one doesn't knock, this one comes in through my window... he who shall not be named - aka, Karan - jumps out my window as per his convenience; he'll sit on my bed, since it's right beside the window, when he wants to leave and keeps saying "uh huh" after every single word being uttered from my mouth, and then he'll jump (fall) out the window and run (crawbble - a combination of 'crawl' and 'hobble') for the hills.

 _Men_.

"Ugh, seriously Rey? Now is not a good time!" He simply ignores me, taking in my attire and the state of my bed.

"Sorry, am I interrupting your time with the dream team?" His sarcasm causes me to throw my favorite pillow - bless its soul - at his face. "I deserved that," Rey admits unwillingly, letting the pillow fall to the floor. He walks around from the foot of my bed to the side of it, intending to sit down.

"There is literally like no space for you to sit." I make a big show of gesturing to the food spread out all over my bed... and then the gigantic empty space which was large enough for him to comfortably lie down in.

Rey grins as he reaches for a slice of pizza. "That can be fixed." I smack his hand away.

"Keep your grubby paws off my precious food."

"You have two different types of pizzas here!" Rey points out, as if that's actually supposed to mean something.

"And it's all mine!" I exclaim, getting right in his face. Rey narrows his eyes at me.

"Are you drunk?"

I pause for a good minute or so before saying, "Little bit, yeah," and moving my head away from his face.

"Well, that sucks because we really need to talk."

"I don't want to talk to you right now." I dramatically throw my blanket off my feet as I get up, walking away from Rey, intending to find some way to ignore him. "I'm surprised I haven't knocked you out cold yet."

"Saara -"

I snap my head in his direction, immediately cutting him off. "No! I have had enough of this stupid night, and this stupid day, and this entire stupid one-month college experience! I'm done. I can't take it anymore, not tonight. So just  _leave_ , okay?"

"I'm not leaving until we talk Saara!" shouts Rey, his voice booming an octave higher. He wants a screaming match? Oh, I'll give him a screaming match!

I take a few steps towards him, my hands balling into fists, my voice quivering with rage. "I said  _leave_ , Rey."

"I just want to talk -"

"What is there to talk about, huh? No, tell me, just what exactly is there to talk about? You hurt my best-friend, plain and simple, that is all there is to it." I reach out for Rey's wrist, roughly grabbing it, causing him to wince in pain. "Oh, did that hurt? Because that is exactly what you did to Kriya! How does it  _feel_ Rey? Not so nice, right?"

"Saara -"

"I'm not through with you!" I growl, tightening my grip on his wrist. I push Rey away from me, and then pull him back in. "Now Rey, tell me, did that not feel as if I was about to  _tear your arm off_?! Did you, or did you not lose all feeling in your arm? Because I know Kriya definitely did." I let go of Rey's wrist, watching as he begins to massage it the minute that I had let go. But I wasn't through with him yet, oh, not by a long shot!

I begin walking circles around Rey, sneering at him. "Now imagine how you'd feel if someone just left you stranded in the middle of the dance floor, to go dance with someone else. If they basically just spat in your face by telling you, in front of dozens of people, that they'd rather dance with someone,  _anyone_ , else. Would that, or would that not break your heart just the slightest?"

"I think that you're -"

"That I'm what? That I'm blowing things way out of proportion? That I'm making things seem a lot more dramatic than they really are?  _What_ , Reyaansh?! What am I doing?"

"I think that you need to calm down -"

"Do not tell me to calm down!" I had stopped walking circles around Rey, my face dangerously close to his. "I am perfectly calm for a person who is beyond pissed off at someone for hurting her best friend."

"Oh, so I'm just  _someone_ now? Glad to know where I stand in your life."

My eyes bulge out of their sockets in disbelief. "No, don't you dare turn the tables on me Singhania -"

"Why? Why shouldn't I?" Now apparently it was Rey's turn to get in my face. "Because apparently, my best-friend only considers me as  _someone_. So what, you're just going to throw our entire friendship away because of that  _girl_?"

"That  _girl_  is my best friend! Her name is Kriya, she is an absolute delight and I love her more than life itself, and you  _hurt_  her, Reyaansh! You need to understand that. Do not try to guilt me over to your side, I'm with Kriya all the way, one hundred percent!"

"So basically you're choosing her over me?"

"I am not  _choosing_ her over you, Rey!" I run my finger through my hair in frustration, tugging at them as if I were ready to yank them out.

"Really? Because that's exactly what this feels like."

"Okay, now who's blowing things out of proportion?"

"Um, still you!"

"Really?! Oh, this just rich!" I am appalled by Rey's behavior right now, and judging from the look on his face, it shows. "I try to get you to see that you were behaving like a complete Neanderthal tonight, that what you did was so wrong on so many levels, and you try to make it all about you!"

"I'm not trying to make it all about me -" Rey begins to protest, but I cut him off, beginning to mimic him.

"Oh Saara, how dare you choose your best-friend that I hurt over me?"

"Saara, stop it!" I ignore him, literally, fuck you Reyaansh Singhania.

"It's all about me! I'm the wounded bird here, Kriya's the bad guy. Boo hoo hoo, I'm so emotionally tortured. How could you betray me, my best-friend -"

And that's when it happened. The minute I felt Rey's warm - that's an understatement, they were like burning hot lava - hands on my face, I stopped talking, heck I think I may have stopped breathing. Our faces were close,  _way_ too close, much closer than either of us wanted them to be. His hot breath was fanning my face, the scent of the sour cream and onion chips he had probably stolen from Nisha invading my nose. Our lips almost brushed, and Rey, the instigator of this awkward action which may or may not ruin our friendship, seemed more nervous and confused than I was.

Again, fuck you Reyaansh Singhania.

* * *

Sharon Rai Prakash was no fool. She knew there was something wrong with her baby cousin the minute she'd asked her for a favor.

Vrushika Rai Prakash does  _not_ do favors.

As Sharon sits in her room, squeezing the life out of her favorite pink pillow, because it helps her think, she wonders what could possibly be wrong with Vrushika. She was doing fine a couple days ago, even just tonight at the party. She seemed so happy with Swayam... and then she danced with Shivam. But what could Shivam have possibly said to rattle her younger cousin?

Multiple scenarios flash through her head as to what could have changed her cousin's demeanor within the span of one night, but all the shouting coming from Saara's room broke her concentration.

"Is that Rey's voice I hear?" she wonders out loud, putting her pillow down as she gets off her ginormous queen bed.

She's about to walk outside, when she hears a phone ring. 'Fight Song' by Rachel Platten started to play, causing Sharon to furrow her eyebrows. That wasn't her ringtone. She picks up the phone which lay in the corner of her desk, and notices a raccoon case. That wasn't her case either!

"Did Vrushi forget her phone here?" She shakes the thought away and looks down at the caller ID.

It was Swayam.

Should she answer Swayam's call, maybe ask if he knows what's wrong with Vrushika? Or should she go make sure Rey and Saara don't destroy the house? It was times like these where Sharon hated being the oldest one present! She liked making decisions, but at the same time, she despised it. It was too much responsibility, she often felt like a mom.

She doesn't want to feel like a mom.

"Okay Sharon, your inner turmoil can wait," she tells herself.  _Rey and Saara can work out their own problems_ , she thinks,  _Vrushika's more important right now_.

She clicks 'answer,' putting the phone against her ear.

"Vrushika?" she hears Swayam say.

"No, it's me, Sharon. Vrushika forgot her phone in my room."

"Oh." He sounded disappointed, Sharon noticed. "I guess I'll call back later then."

"Wait!" Sharon shouts, stopping Swayam from hanging up. "Did you - I mean, do you - is there a problem... of some sort... that you're having?"

 _Wow, way to not make things awkward Sharon!_ Sharon mentally scolds herself, smacking herself lightly on the side of her head.

"I actually just had a fight with Aashi." Swayam was using what Sharon had come to recognize as his 'tortured artist cum drama queen zyada' voice. "I just thought that maybe at least hearing Vrushika's voice would make me feel better."

Sharon raises a surprised, yet curious, eyebrow.  _Swayam is craving the sound of Vrushika's voice_? she thinks,  _I think I smell a love story brewing_!

As if Swayam had heard Sharon's inner thoughts, he quickly demands, "Did I just say that out loud?"

"Were you not supposed to say that out loud?" Sharon says teasingly, taking a seat on the chair in front of her desk.

"It wasn't really part of the plan, no."

Sharon chuckles. "So what was your fight about?"

"It was one that left me questioning my life's choices."

"Hm, fights with Aashi do tend to end that way."

"She should come with a warning: Beware! Must not anger! Will leave you a confused mess!"

Sharon bursts out laughing. This felt like the old days, like the old Sharon. Happy, carefree and never seen without a smile. Once Sharon calms down a little, she asks, "So what is it that Aashi's mad at you for?"

Swayam was stumped. He didn't know how to honestly answer this question without telling Sharon that he was in love with her.

"So you see," he begins, pretty much flying blind here, "I'm in love with this girl," Sharon's ears perk up at that phrase as she starts grinning from ear to ear - she knew he was in love with Vrushika, "but Aashi thinks that I'm not in love with her, that I'm just in love with the idea of her. She thinks that I just want someone to fix, and not someone to love."

Sharon frowns. Aashi may be slightly correct. Swayam has been trying to get Vrushika to open up to him, so in a way, he is trying to fix her. But that doesn't necessarily mean that he can't be in love with her. Vrushika is sweet, down-to-earth, and super chill - exactly the type of girl Sharon has always thought that Swayam needed, that he'd end up with. Plus, she's seen the way he looks at her; you only look at someone like that if you are truly, madly, deeply in love with them.

Sharon shares her thoughts with Swayam. "Why can't it be both? I mean, you can try to 'fix' her, as Aashi oh so gently put it, while being in love with her. You help the people you love, right?"

"Yeah, you're right! Thanks Sharon!" exclaims Swayam, causing Sharon to smile and giddily say, "Happy to help!"

Suddenly, the tone of her voice takes a complete 180. "But um, I actually need your help with something."

"Whatever you want."

"It's about Vrushika -"

"What about Vrushika?" Swayam cuts in, his voice sharp, his tone worried - something Sharon also makes a mental note of.

"Well, when I got home, she asked me to cut her hair. I know it doesn't seem like a big deal, but there was this look in her eyes, like she had the weight of the world on her shoulders. I tried asking her about it, but she remained silent. I couldn't get a peep out of her. She just left after I cut her hair, and she hasn't come out of her room since. I wanted to give her some space, but I don't want her doing anything rash so I check in on her every couple minutes, knocking on her door, and she'll kind of just grunt at me, but at least I know she's  _physically_ alright. I'm really worried Swayam."

Swayam furrows his eyebrows in confusion, trying to think about what could be wrong with Vrushika. "Do you think that something happened at the Rose Day party? Because she was fine when we were dancing together the first time around."

Sharon mimics Swayam's actions on the other side of the phone. "What do you mean the first time?"

"Well, the second time she seemed a little more distant to me, like her mind was somewhere else entirely."

"She danced with Shivam, maybe he said something to set her off?"

"What could Shivam have possibly said to get to her? They don't even know each other that well."

"But he's Shivam, and he has that annoying thing that he does where he literally tells people how they're feeling."

"He's usually right," Swayam reminds her.

"Doesn't matter! It always ends up causing problems for others."

"Maybe it's not even Shivam. Maybe it's me."

"What are you talking about?" Sharon was really lost now.

"I've been trying to get Vrushika to open up to me about her stage fright, and I think that maybe I pushed a little too far. She told me about how something happened and she had a lot of things on her mind, so she completely froze up during a major performance."

"She told how she got her stage fright?!" exclaims Sharon, quite possibly shattering Swayam's already sensitive - due to living with three women who loved screaming as loudly as humanly possible - hearing.

"Yeah..." He trails off, not sure what Sharon was getting at.

"She hasn't spoken to anyone about that, Swayam! Don't you get it? You can't possibly be the reason she's upset! She feels comfortable around you, comfortable enough to open up to you about something she hasn't talked to anyone else about. That's a big deal!"

"So you think that whatever I'm doing is a good thing?"

"Yes, absolutely! You are not the root cause of all her problems, this- this is something else."

"Yeah, but what?"

"That's what we need to find out."

* * *

Kriya's POV

"The skate park? Seriously?" I ask Karan, expecting clowns to pop out of nowhere, coming out juggling dolphins... which obviously didn't happen, hence the death glares I'm sending Karan's way.

"You made me walk two kilometers in these ridiculous high heels, which I don't even know why I chose to wear, just so you could bring me to the skate park?"

"That's right," Karan practically  _sings_  at me. Sings! Goddammit, why does he have to have the voice of an angel? Curse his angelic voice!

"What am I even supposed to be doing here? Watching you do tricks  _without_ your trusty skateboard?"

"No, you're supposed to talk to me."

"Okay one, why did you need to bring me to a skate park just to talk to me? And two, I have nothing to say."

"Okay one," says Karan, mimicking my voice and doing a terrible impression of me (it's actually spot on, but he doesn't need to know that), earning him a smack on the arm.

"Oof!" He massages his arm as he rolls his shoulder up and down. Okay, I didn't hit him  _that_  hard, he's had worse. Good grief, sometimes he's more dramatic than Saara, and that girl does that dramatic fainting thing you see in terrible movies like every single day of her life.

"Now as I was saying, I brought you here because in case you forgot, we made a pact here a few years back -"

"Not this again!"

"- to always say the truth and nothing but the truth -"

"This is torture!"

"- and to also do everything the other person says, no matter how ridiculous the demand might be."

"Who's bright idea was this again?"

"Yours."

"Do you have a time machine? Because I need to go back and smack my younger self across the face."

"Wouldn't it make more sense to stop her - or,  _you_ \- from making the pact in the first place?"

"Yes, it would," I say when I understand Karan's logic. "What do you want?"

"I want you to talk to me."

"Like I said, I have nothing to say."

"Yes, you do! What is going on in your head right now? Because you are not acting like yourself. I know I've said this before, but I'm gonna' say it again. The Kriya Shekhawat that I know, would've smacked the shit out of Rey for manhandling her like that, in public no less!"

He's right. He's always right. If I had to pick anyone who knows me better than Saara or my sister, I would hands down, forever and always, pick Karan Modi. He's the one who always gets me to open up, to talk about my feelings. There was no point in lying to Karan. I mean, it's Karan! Sweet - broke my best friend's heart - but still sweet Karan. I never hid anything from him before, so why start now?

I take a deep breath before beginning my spiel. "I know that under normal circumstances I would've slapped him, bitched at him, and kicked him where it hurts the most... but this is different. Rey has every right to be furious with me right now. He trusted me to trust him... and I didn't. I thought that he broke my trust, that he lied to me, that he played me! But in reality, Rey was doing exactly what I was; trusting his mortal frenemy with his biggest secret, something he doesn't like to talk about, not even with his closest friends. We were on the verge of becoming friends and  _I_  ruined that by jumping to conclusions.  _I_ ruined that by slapping him, something he didn't deserve. It was  _my_ fault. He had every right to be angry at me."

Karan doesn't say anything. He simply takes my hand, and walks us over to the bench, sitting down. He places his hands on my shoulders, and looks me dead in the eye. "Do  _not_ , under any circumstances,  _blame_ yourself for this. This is not your fault, and yes, I was listening to everything you said and I assure every syllable has been imprinted into my brain.

You were going to apologize to Rey, but  _he_ didn't want to listen, so that's on  _him_. And while he had every right to be angry with you, he had absolutely no right to humiliate you and to treat you the way that he did. That wasn't right, you hear me?  _He_ chose to not listen to you when you tried to apologize,  _he_  made a choice, a bad choice, and that was  _his_ fault. It's not your fault that  _he_ made a stupid choice, it's  _his_ , _s_ o stop blaming yourself. This problem is a two-way street and you need to realize that it was Rey's fault too. You're not always at fault, Kriya. Sometimes other people are at fault too. Remember that."

Stupid Karan, always making me emotional and have the Nile river pour out of my eyes. What does he think he is, a walking, talking Disney movie?

I bury my head in his shirt, his arms wrapping around me, holding me tight. "You're lucky I don't wear makeup," I mumble, causing him to chuckle. He just continues to stroke my hair, patiently waiting for me to let all this crying business out of my system. He may be a walking, talking Disney movie, but he's my walking, talking Disney movie.

* * *

Taani's POV

Reyaansh Singhania is the biggest jerk I've ever met and I cannot believe for the life of me that just two days ago, I was singing his praises. Lies, all lies! God, what he did tonight... I may be done with Sharon but  _him_ , oh him I'm not done with, not just yet.

I march into the house, taking my high heels off. "Maasi, I'm home!"

"Don't yell, I'm just getting to the good part!" Maasi exclaims from her spot on the couch. I shake my head as I walk over to her, sitting down beside her.

"What are you watch - OH MY GOD, IS THAT KAHAANI 2?!" I demand, glaring at my aunt. "I thought you promised that you'd actually watch it with me this time around, unlike what you did with the first Kahaani."

Maasi simply shrugs her shoulders. "Promises are made to be broken."

"It's ' _rules_ are made to be broken,' Maasi."

"Excuse me? No rules will be broken under my watch!" I groan, having no energy left in me to even snort at her pathetic attempts at being strict, as I head towards my room. I need sleep after the crazy day that I've had. And maybe my best-friend who's an idiot and refuses to be in my presence. I turn on the lights, only to find the one person I never expected to see again, sitting in my bay window - a window with a built-in mini-bed attached to it.

Aarav.

He gets up as soon as he sees me, this strange expression on his face, one that I'd seen him give me on multiple occasions.

I shake my head, trying to come out of my own thoughts, and manage to ask, "What are you doing here?"

Before Aarav could say anything, Maasi calls out to me, "Oh yeah, Aarav's in your room!"

"Thanks, Maasi!" I shout back at her, without an ounce of sincerity, appreciation or gratitude in my tone of voice.

I close the bedroom door, giving Aarav my full attention. I wait for him to speak, but instead, I find him continuing to stare at me. My cheeks turn bright pink as I demand, a little more harshly than I probably should've, "Why're you looking at me like that?"

Aarav looks like a startled kid who just got caught with his hand in the cookie jar. "I - you -"

"Something other than pronouns, please." My eyes were suddenly very interested in my bare, nail-art done by Nisha Sen herself, feet.

"Okay, it's been a while since I've seen you -"

"And whose fault is that?!"

"I deserve that -"

"That and a whole lot more."

"Can you let me finish, please?" he demands, frustrated at this point. I can tell because he's doing that thing he does with his hands where they turn into claws, and it is just the most adorable - focus Taani!

"Continue."

A satisfied, at peace grin appears on his face at my words. "Thank you. As I was saying, it's been a while since I've seen you, and here you are in a really nice dress - a Rinni Shah original because what else - which makes you look even more beautiful than usual because I have seen you look like a raccoon who just got mauled by badger, and I was still in awe."

Damn it, now  _I_ was in awe.  _Focus_ Taani!

"And I repeat," I say, wanting to change the topic, "what are you doing here."

He looks up at me with those adorable -  _goddammit_  - sad puppy eyes of his. "Karan filled me in on the latest. I had a feeling that you might need a friend."

"No, I don't need a friend." He looks down at the ground dejectedly. "I need a best-friend." He looks up and finds me standing right next to him, with a scowl on my face. "You think you can be there for me for one night  _without_  disappearing, Houdini?"

"I can try," he says meekly, causing my face to soften. I proceed to sit down, prompting Aarav to do the same. The first thing that he lays his eyes on is my hand, prompting him to take it in his own when he sees what's happened.

"What happened to your hand? Did Rey... did he hurt you? Because, brother from another mother or not, if he did, I'll  _kill_ him. I'm not kidding, I'll do it."

"Relax." My voice is soothing, because I'm 93% sure that Aarav is actually serious, and the last thing I want him to do is to get himself thrown in jail.

Again.

"I got this from punching the wall in. Karan took care of me."

"Wow, he did a great job with the bandaging. This looks so professional!"

"Right?! I don't know whether to be impressed or concerned."

"Probably a little bit of both. Now, do you want to tell me why you punched a wall in?"

"Rey's a dick, and speaking of dicks, I hope his falls off. Better yet, I'll slice it myself."

"Taani, enough about Rey's dick, okay? Look, I grew up with him, and the guy both you and Karan were describing to me is not the Reyaansh Singhania that I know and love."

"Well, I  _thought_ that he was a decent guy... up until tonight when I found out that he's actually an asshole. He seemed so...  _perfect_ at first, and then it's like a switch went off and as if on cue, the curtains go up and everyone sees the ugly truth."

"Hm... sounds like a certain Miss Perfect that I know."

"You  _know_ I hate it when you call me that," I bark at him, my resting bitch face coming out to play for the first time in years.

"You call me bonehead."

"That's because you are a bonehead."

"All I'm saying is, you're not exactly Sally Sunshine."

"Hey Krishnaji, enough with the nicknames!"

"Listen to me!" yells Aarav, grabbing ahold of my hands before my fists started flying, as they always do. "You may have been everyone's best friend at school with your 'look at me, I'm Taani the sweet, innocent head girl' act, but I know what happened behind the scenes, I know  _everything_ that you tried so hard to hide."

"Why are you bringing this up?" My regrettable past was the last thing that I wanted to talk about right now.

"I'm just saying that it's a little hypocritical for you to be attacking Rey about being two-faced when you practically invented the term."

I begin to open my mouth to protest, but as always, Aarav 'I know what you're going to say before you even say it' Saxena cut me off. "I'm not saying that you can't be pissed at him for whatever he's done to Kriya, punch in all the walls you want. All I'm saying is that it wouldn't be right to accuse him of deception when that's the perfect word to sum your entire existence from ages ten to now."

I stop and think for a minute. Did I want to be an immature brat and say Aarav was completely wrong and deny everything because I don't like he who shall be from now on referred to as Voldemort because he is evil? Or did I want to be Miss Perfect and see the logic of the situation? Well, I definitely want to be immature because Voldemort sucks, but I need to be Miss Perfect... although... I mean, it's only Aarav here, so I can be as immature as I want to be!

And boy am I itching to be.

"Whatever, you don't know anything. You're probably just sleep-deprived," I say, smirking at Aarav as I fold my arms over my chest, causing Aarav to roll his eyes.

"Were you doing that thing where you contemplate being an immature brat and Miss Perfect?" he asks, raising an eyebrow, already knowing the answer to his question.

"I hate you."

"Nah, you're totally in love with me."

" _I'm_  in love with you?!"

"See, you said it yourself."

"No, no no, NO! If anything,  _you're_ in love with  _me_."

"Bullshit!"

"It was in your note."

"There was nothing in that stupid note about me being in love with you!"

"Ha!" I exclaim in his face. "So you admit that the note is stupid."

"No, I'm saying that you're stupid."

"Oh, yeah, real mature!"

"You call me bonehead, and you refuse to listen to reason, yet I'm the immature one?"

"That sounds about right, yeah."

"Well you're - you're -" Aarav stammers, unable to fire back, causing me to smirk... which lasts a solid two seconds before he fires back, "you're a terrible kisser!"

My eyes widen, my jaw dropping to the floor as the most offended gasp known to man, woman and animal comes out of my mouth.

"Well... then why'd you kiss me in the first place?"

"Why'd you kiss back?"

"Because it felt great okay!" I blurt out accidentally, my hand immediately covering up my brainless mouth - great, why couldn't it have done that earlier? - as my cheeks go bright red. I watch as Aarav's classic Cheshire Cat grin decides to make an appearance.

"I didn't mean to say that, it was totally spur of the moment and I -" I don't even get to finish my sentence due to Aarav's lips closing in on mine.

God, when I said it felt great, I wasn't kidding. It wasn't great - it was incredible, phenomenal, extraordinary and as cheesy as it sounds, magical. You would think his lips would be rough, but dear lord, they felt like liquid - a very, very hot liquid that I could literally melt into.

One of his large hands was cupping my face, while the other had made its way down my arm, and all the way towards my bandaged hand. He gets up, pulling me up along with him, and just as he does I wish he hadn't. His one hand that had now gone from my hand over to my waist, was the only thing that was keeping me from losing my balance. I tugged at his hair harder, causing him to groan, tightening his grip on my waist. My free hand made its way over to his cheek, lightly drawing circles with my index finger. He shivers, his other hand having gone from my own cheek to the other side of my waist, pulling me in closer. I smile into the kiss, resulting in Aarav's own smile widening as well.

I've managed to maneuver us away from the bay window, the back of Aarav's knees hitting the side of my bed. Before anything else could happen, I hear the bedroom door open, causing both me and Aarav to come back to our senses. We pull away from each other as fast as we can, making our way back to the bay window before anyone comes in.

And as our luck would have it, it was my sister and our good friend Karan.

I'm ready to commit homicide.

Aarav's ready to help.

Karan, ever so perceptive, is the first one to notice the murderous looks that have appeared on mine and Aarav's faces. "Are we interrupting something?" he asks, raising an eyebrow, slightly amused.

"No!" both Aarav and I say at once, alarmed.

I'm killing him first.

"We were just talking -" I begin to say.

"- about everything that went on tonight," Aarav finishes for me.

"Right," says Karan, as if to say, 'I totally believe you macaroons.' I roll my eyes, turning my attention towards my sister. Her eyes were slightly tinted red, as if she'd been crying. I don't point it out, knowing that she'd hate for me to bring it up in front of Aarav and Karan, making a mental note to ask her about it later.

Instead, I ask her, "Did you he get to you with that skatepark nonsense again?" Di nods at me sadly, miming shooting herself at the side of her head.

"To be fair, she  _was_  the one who came up with the skate park nonsense," Aarav points out, quick to come to his friend's defense.

"Shut it, Houdini," di snaps at Aarav, causing him to moan.

Goddammit, really?!

"I really wish that you guys would stop calling me that."

"Blame Nisha," I tell him. Before Aarav could respond, the door opens, revealing my brother Swayam on the other side.

"Mom's calling everyone for dinner, and by everyone, yes, I mean  _everyone_. This includes you two freeloaders as well."

"You'd think that he was talking about you guys, but he's not," di informs Karan and Aarav.

"Oh yeah, I totally mean Taani and Kriya, you guys are cool," bhai says casually, walking away.

"You heard the man," I say, "dinner has been served!"

This night just got a whole lot more interesting...

* * *

"What was that?" demands Saara, her voice shaking. Rey had let go of her face a good ten minutes ago, and ever since then, the two had been sitting in Saara's room, on opposite ends. Never mind talking, they were barely able to look each other in the eye!

"I don't know," says Rey, his voice barely above a whisper.

"Well... I um - I think that you should leave," Saara struggles to find her words, picking at the threads coming out of her sheets.

Rey awkwardly clears his throat. "Yeah, you're probably right." He tries to get off Saara's fuzzy beanbag chair, which was all the way across from her bed, right beside her door, but keeps slipping and sliding due to the material and texture of the chair. Normally, Saara would find this hilarious, but right now, she was too freaked out to even crack a smile.

Rey finally manages to get off the chair and opens the door to leave, but immediately stops himself, turning around.

He can't leave without telling Saara what Taani had said to him.

"I can't do this."

"Can't do what?" asks Saara, furrowing her eyebrows, causing her eyes to squint.

He takes a few steps towards her bed. "I can't leave without telling you something that Taani said to me."

Saara gets up immediately, her defensive friend mechanism going off the rails. "So Kriya wasn't enough, now you have to go after Taani as well?"

"It's not like that -"

"Then what's it like? Rey, you've already treated one of my best-friends like crap, must you go after all of them now?"

"Saara -"

"So what? Do you have some sort of list going on? Are you crossing off names as we go? Who's next on your list, Karan? Or will just decide to surprise me because -"

"Did you know that Taani told me that she'd pick Kriya over you?" Rey blurts out, stopping Saara mid-sentence.

It takes Saara a few moments to process what Rey had just said to her before she firmly states, "You're lying."

"I'm not lying! You'd know if I were lying to you."

"See, that's just the thing, Rey. After tonight, I don't really think that I know you at all."

Rey's expression softens, the hurt tone of voice practically breaking Saara's heart to pieces as he helplessly cries out, "Of course you know me, Saara. I'm your best friend, always have been, always will be," his voice begins to rise, "You call me Egghead and I call you Tiny Toes and we pretend to be pissed off at each other except we secretly like the stupid nicknames," his loud booming voice becomes soft, cracking as tears threaten to break through, "You kick my ass at both video games and basketball, and although I always say that I let you win, we both know that's not true.

You're that little weirdo who'd always draw on my face with glitter glue. Glitter glue! I've made copies of all your paintings and I have watched every single stupid video you've ever made, and I know that I complain like a little five-year-old, but that's only because I don't want to admit how immensely talented you are. You got me to try nachos, and you made me play laser tag and- and- you're my  _best friend_... and I love you."

Saara doesn't have a clue as to how she should respond to that. She blinks back the tears that are starting to form, her mind telling her not to be vulnerable right now, not to cry. She swallows the bile starting to form at the back of her throat, and manages to choke out the four magic words.

"You need to leave."

Rey stands still for a moment, whether he was confused or shocked was hard to tell. But he was hurt. He was hurt that his best-friend had chosen two strangers over him.  _He_  was her best friend, he'd been there since the beginning, not them! He wanted to scream and shout, but instead, he chose the hard way to out.

He chose to leave.

Rey glances back at Saara one last time, before walking out the door and closing it behind him. Saara stares at it blankly before dropping down on her bed and letting all the tears that she had suppressed break free. It was then and there, that she knew that she had just lost her best friend.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Musical Inspiration: When You Find Me by Joshua Radin ft. Maria Taylor, Good Enough by Little Mix, Little Do You Know by Alex & Sierra, and Rock What You Got by Superchick


	21. And the winner is...

You know how everyone has that friend who always wakes up before the others? The early bird, the morning person, Kriya Shekhawat… yeah, Kriya Shekhawat is that friend, and rightfully so as proven by the way she was marching around her room, banging pots and pans together in order to wake up her sleeping friends.

"Rise and shine! Up and at 'em!"

Karan, pillow he wished he could duct tape over his head covering his face, looks up at Taani from the mattress that was so kindly set up for him and Aarav to sleep on.

"Is she seriously banging pots and pans together? Because drummers all around the multiverse are dying. I think I might be next."

Taani groans, glancing at her sister as she groggily manages to say, "Di, I love you more than life itself, but it is  _way_  too early in the morning for this."

Aarav, face digging into his pillow, says, without even looking up at the others, "I would just like to point out that I'm here by force. You two idiots actually  _chose_  to befriend this."

Kriya grabs a pillow from the bay window and throws it Aarav's face, causing Karan to shift away from him to avoid being collateral damage. Aarav, rather thanking the stars that it wasn't a frying pan, flips her off, as Kriya burns a hole through his skull with her heated eyes.

"Again,  _chose to befriend this_."

"Yeah, and I've been regretting it ever since," groans Karan.

"You and me both honey," Taani calls out. "I feel that on such a personal level, honestly, I really do. But just remember, I have to live with her."

"Okay, drama queens, let go of your inner Karan Johar and get the hell up. Mom wants you all at the breakfast table, she made her world famous 'breakfast of the champions' and -"

Before Kriya could even finish, her cousin and friends are out the door and at the dining table. She smacks herself upside the head as realization hits her.

"I really should've just led with that."

Making her way to the dining table, Kriya doesn't even have the time to appreciate her mother's masterpiece as she goes over her debate prep questions. Taani, noticing the lack of food entering her sister's stomach, rips the paper from her hand, ignoring Kriya's pleas and protests.

"Food first, stress later."

"Princess -"

"Di!" The two girls stare down at each other, daring the other to break first. Kriya eventually sighs and gives in, throwing her arms up in the air as she grabs an aloo paratha. Taani smirks triumphantly at Kriya before looking over her papers. She nods in approval as she sets it aside, directing her attention back towards Kriya.

"Okay, di, listen to me very carefully - the key to this debate is not to attack Rey, even though he totally deserves it. You have to argue with him at every turn and prove him wrong – question all his choices, even if you agree with him.  _Especially_  if you agree with them. You can take those opinions and make them sound better in your favor."

"While that may be true," Karan begins to say, his tone sly, "attacking him wouldn't be too bad."

"Not really the right situation. But if she wants to meet him in a dark alley and he goes missing the next day, I wouldn't question it."

"She could 'accidentally' push him down a flight of stairs."

"You kidding me? Boy's the size of an ape, one flight of stairs isn't going to cut it! Jeez, Karan, it's like you're not even trying."

"You're the homicidal maniac!"

"The entire football team of Elite Academy would beg to differ."

"Okay, one measly sprained wrist -"

"Three broken wrists, four arms, and two legs. Don't even get me started on the black eyes and busted lips."

As Karan and Taani try to decide who's crazier out of the two – Kriya had obviously tuned them out the moment Taani said something about a dark alley and Rey going missing – Aarav leans in to whisper to Smriti, "So, are you not worried about them turning your daughter into a convict."

Simmi waves the comment off like it was nothing. "Not in the least. Kriya's way too chicken for that. Those two, on other hand, need to be put under surveillance."

"On it," Swayam replies immediately, catching his mother's drift.

Just then, Taani's phone beeps, and she sees that it's a text from Saara. "Can you please come over right now? I need you," it read. Taani sprang into action, rushing towards her room to grab a chocolate bar from her emergency stash, with Aarav following her, concern evident on his face.

"Is something wrong?" Taani, whose back was facing towards Aarav, spins around to face him at the sound of his voice.

"Oh, hey. Um, it's just Saara, she wanted me to come over. I should probably go." Taani starts to walk towards the door, when Aarav's voice stops her once again.

"Wait, before you do," Taani freezes on her spot, "I have something to say to you. Many things, actually."

"Aarav, now is not really -"

"I know, I know! This will only take a second, maybe like the rest of my life max."

Taani sighs, folding her arms over her chest. "Proceed."

"Thank you. Look, I know that you think that I haven't been fair to you, and maybe I haven't, but you need to know that despite me not being here with you, it doesn't mean that I'm not here  _for_  you. You know that I'll always have your back, no matter what, don't you?"

"I used to. Aarav, you say something, but you mean something else. You said that I'm never going to see you again, that you're never coming back, that you're staying away from me, but whenever I look over my shoulder for help, I see you standing there. You say that you're trying to protect me, but all you're doing is hurting me. I love you, I really do, you're my best friend and so, so much more! But I can't keep doing this same song and dance with you. I'm sorry."

With that, Taani marches out the door, only to be greeted by Arjun who was bribed with money by his twin to drive Taani to their place. Aarav sadly watches her go, his train of thought broken by the other Shekhawat sister's voice.

"We need to talk."

* * *

"Saara!" Taani calls out upon entering her friend's room, only to find her curled up in her beanbag chair. "Hey, sorry for being late, Aarav -"

"Say no more!" Saara sends her friend an understanding glance, making Taani feel guilty for accidentally blurting out to Rey that her sister's more important to her than Saara. She chucks the thought as she sits down cross-legged on the floor – thank god for carpeting – in front of her. Taani then watches as Saara's eyes light up at the sight of the chocolate bar in Taani's hand.

"Is this from your emergency stash?"

"Well, when one's friend sends a text which causes one's stress and anxiety levels to go up by seventy-three percent, one tends to find oneself preparing for the worst."

"Thanks, Anya di, although I don't know why you're suddenly possessing my best-friend Taani's body while she's still in her PJs."

"Okay, Anya di is not – wait, what?!" Taani practically screeches as she looks down at her attire. "Are you telling me that I've been in my 'My Little Pony' PJ set this whole time?" Saara looks at her sympathetically, causing Taani to groan. "I was in such a hurry to get here, I just threw on my hoodie and a pair of flats and left."

Saara bites her lip in guilt, guilt over the fact that she'd burst out to Sharon that she'd pick Kriya over Taani. Lost in her thoughts, it took Taani screaming in her ear to bring her back down to Earth.

"You want to tell me what that text was about?"

"Yeah, right after my ears stop ringing!"

"Jwalu, you're stalling."

Saara sighs. "I know."

Taani scoots closer to Saara, holding onto her hands, looking her right in her troubled eyes. "What's wrong honey?"

"Something happened between me and Rey." If it were any normal person, they wouldn't have heard what Saara said due to the fact that her voice was at the lowest of low volumes, but Taani with her bat hearing was a whole other story.

"Happened in what sense? Like in an awkward ruin-your-friendship kind of sense, or in an I'm-totally-gonna'-have-to-kick-his-ass kind of sense?"

"Little bit of both. I don't know what happened; one minute we were arguing, and the next he just grabbed my face real close."

"How close?"

"I could smell the sour cream and onion chips in his breath."

"Well on the bright side, Nisha will end him so -"

"Taani!"

"Right, not the point. So, what happened after that?"

"Well, things got really awkward."

"How awkward?"

"Like worse than Nil and Simmi level awkward."

"Yikes! What are you going to do now?"

"Well, on the bright side, I was already pissed at him, but now I can't even glare at him without remembering that awkward moment."

Taani assesses the situation for a moment, before finally asking, "Okay, tell me this – have you ever thought about something potentially happening with Rey?"

Saara looks at Taani as if she had just declared that pink is her new favorite color - which would never happen because Taani gave a speech about everything wrong with the color pink in the second grade.

"No, of course not! I mean, it's Rey. Rey whose underwear I stole from ages right when I started walking to right when I started going to school. Rey whose underwear I proudly hung on a stick and called the 'flag of filth' as I ran around all over his house."

Taani bursts out laughing, so hard that she was practically in tears as that image ran through her brain. "Oh my god, please tell me you have pictures of that!"

"Better – I have videos."

"Girl, yes!"

After their laughter has died down, Taani softly says, "Look, you can be as mad at him as you want to, in fact, I encourage your rage. But this awkwardness that's there, that you need to talk about. Clear the air, and then go back to wanting to strangle him."

"You're right, thanks Taanu." Saara smiles at her, but jumps back when she hears Nicki Minaj's 'Superbass' blasting at full volume.

"Sorry," Taani says meekly, pulling her phone out of the pocket of her hoodie, "it's my alarm."

"You wake up at eight every morning? I mean, I know you love to sleep in as much as I do but -"

"Yeah, this one of the thirty alarms I have set on my phone." Saara widens her eyes in disbelief.

"God, you are worse than Sharon di and Vrushika."

"We can talk about my Type A personality later. Think there's enough time for me to go back home and change?"

"Not at all." Saara gets up, pulling Taani up along with her. "I probably have something for you though. I mean, we are the same size."

"Not true, you have bigger boobs."

"You have longer legs."

"That's true."

"You're already wearing your flats, so let me just find something Taani-esque in my closet."

"That is next to impossible."

"Challenge accepted!" With that, Saara tosses items out of her closet one by one, having Taani run, duck and scream as she does.

"You're crazy!"

"Only for you – ah ha!" Taani doesn't even get a chance to inspect her outfit before Saara shoves her into the bathroom to change.

* * *

"You want to talk?" Aarav asks, raising an eyebrow.

"I've been wanting to talk since the night of the fresher's party, but  _someone_  – you – keeps dodging my calls, and now you're here in person and I'm not giving you a choice."

Aarav lets out a tired sigh. "That's fair. Hit me."

"Believe me, I just might." Kriya gives him a blinding smile. "So, I know that we're not the best of friends -"

"You hate my guts. I literally saw you nodding in agreement with Ruhi as she went on this tangent about how I was the reason for everything to ever go wrong in Taani's life."

"Crazy bitch or not, girl made some great points."

Aarav simply rolls his eyes, expecting no less from Kriya. "So why are you trying to talk me out of what I'm doing? I thought you'd be throwing a parade!"

"Same." Kriya's playful demeanor suddenly takes a serious turn. "But you're hurting Taani, and I can't stand seeing my sister hurt."

"You think that I want to hurt her?"

Kriya smacks him on the chest, as if he said something crazy and offensive. "Of course not! Look, you might be a terrible influence on her and her life, but at the end of the day, you love her more than any of us. Look, I admit that maybe I think you not being a part of her life is a good thing because she's safe... but she's not happy, Aarav. So prove me, and Ruhi and Taani's dad wrong. Prove us all wrong instead of just running away like a coward!"

"Kriya, me shutting her out is the best thing to ever happen to her! Her dad was her only family, and I took that away from her. Ruhi was her best-friend, heck she was my best friend! And I took that away from her too. She has all of you, she doesn't need me to be happy. I'm just one person -"

"You're not!" Kriya yells at him, sighing exasperatedly. "Yeah, she has all of us, but without you, none of that means anything to her. We all have a piece of her heart, you have the entire goddamn thing, Aarav, don't you get that? You took away her dad, and you took away Ruhi, but  _that_  gave her us.  _You_  gave her us. You gave her happiness."

"I also gave her sadness, and grief, and tears – god, so many tears! Kriya, don't try to convince me to come back, it's not happening." Aarav brushes past her as he walks away.

Needless to say, the car ride to the college was an awkward one. So awkward that Karan actually tried to jump out by their third stop light.

Arriving at college, Karan was the first one out of the car, making a run for his class, causing Kriya and Aarav to roll their eyes. They weren't  _that_  bad… were they?

Just then, Arjun's bright red car screeches to a halt in front of them, as Arjun, Taani, and Saara all get out of the car.

Narrowing his eyes at Aarav, Arjun dramatically says, "Trying to steal my job, eh Saxena? Don't worry, your sister will hear of this!"

Aarav snorts, biting back a smile. "You're such a dork."

"Yeah, but I'm a lovable dork."

"That's true," Taani reminds them.

"Eh, it's debatable," says Saara.

"I can think of forty reasons why it's not, oh dear twin sister of mine." Arjun then tilts his head, and asks, "Also, why is Karan running away?"

"Run after him and find out," Saara deadpans, as Taani lightly elbows her in the side.

"Well clearly, he had the right idea." Arjun walks off to catch up with Karan.

Once he's out of earshot, Saara asks, "Are we sure we love him to pieces?"

"Yes!" they shout back in her face.

"Guys, breath mints, honestly." They all roll their eyes as Saara pulls a box of mints out of her purse, but take one regardless.

"It's not our fault you have a sensitive nose – and are these chocolate covered mints?" The girls all stare at Aarav, as if to say 'what else did you expect, regular mints?' as he simply sighs.

Just then, they all hear the booming sound of a bouncing basketball, causing them to turn their heads in the direction of the basketball court. Lo and behold, it's Reyaansh Singhania, angrily slamming his basketball on the ground, and against the net, and against the fence surrounding the court.

"That is not proper basketball etiquette," quips Taani.

"Sorry Miss State Champion, some of us like to play basketball for fun," retorts Aarav.

"I play for fun."

"Mmhm, and I like my mom's cooking -"

"I'm telling auntie you said that!"

"Whatever. I'm gonna' just peace out and see what's up with the Hulk over there."

Watching Aarav's retreating form, Saara has a strange look on her face. Noticing her friends' concerned glances she explains, "Sorry, it's just that whenever Aarav's around, Rey somehow turns into a genius."

"I can't imagine how that's hard to do," drawls Kriya, earning disapproving glares from Taani and Saara.

"I didn't mean it like that. Aarav just has this way of talking some sense into Rey that apparently no one else, not even his own twin sister, can manage to do."

"I'm sorry, are you seriously talking about dumb and dumber over there?" Taani and Saara simply roll their eyes at their friend as they drag her to APS.

Meanwhile, dumb and dumber were having a conversation of their own.

"What did the basketball ever do to you?" Rey spins around when he hears Aarav's voice, a bright, wide smile adorning his face.

"Hey there stranger!"

"Hey yourself. Want to tell me why you're so intent on murdering that poor, innocent basketball?"

"In my defense, you don't know whether or not the basketball's a cold-blooded criminal."

"Rey!" Rey sighs at the tone of his friend's voice, caving as he runs his fingers through his hair, sliding down against the fence and sitting down. Aarav takes a seat beside him, throwing an arm over his neck as Rey leans on his shoulder.

Rey hates relying on people for anything, especially Aarav. Ever since they were little, Rey has treated Aarav like a younger brother, one that he never wants to let down, to show his weaknesses in front of. But somewhere along the line, Aarav turned out to be his biggest support system, and the only one who could possibly make him see reason, despite his general denseness.

"I suppose you've heard of the tragedy that was Rose Day 2016 of St. Louis College."

"From three different people; Karan called, Nisha texted, and Taani ranted to my face."

Rey snorts. "Let me guess, Nisha, albeit pissed, defended me regardless, while the other two compared me to some sort of incarnation of the devil himself. Am I right?"

"Well, Taani now likes to refer to you as Voldemort, so yeah, that's about it."

"Who?"

Aarav looks genuinely upset and offended by this. "Why do I associate myself with you?"

"Because of that one time when we were toddlers and Saara and Nisha ganged up on you after you accidentally drowned their mascot, King Arthur the aardvark, and I was totally your savior."

"Pretty sure you drowned Arthur, blamed it on me, and then felt bad and decided to push them on the ground before they jumped me," Aarav points out.

"I mean, I felt bad."

"Just like you felt bad about what you did to Kriya."

Rey groans, wincing as he remarks, "Damn, walked right into that one."

"Talk to me Aansh!" Rey smiles at Aarav's use of his childhood nickname. Everyone who knows him knows him as Rey, but only Aarav calls him Aansh. Reason being, Aarav had trouble with the letter r as a kid, so Rey being Rey tells Aarav to call him Aansh, and ever since then, the name stuck, and Aarav was the only one allowed to use it.

"What I did to Kriya was wrong. She didn't deserve that, no one deserves to be publicly humiliated like that. I was being a complete and utter piece of shit all because I couldn't stand the fact that she'd slapped me in in front of everyone for something I didn't even do."

"And you realized this…" Aarav trails off for Rey to finish.

"I realized it when Kriya danced with me a second time. She had this look in her eye, like she was afraid of me, and she quite literally ran away from me. That's when I was hit by the freight train of realization that I behaved like a monster."

"I wouldn't call you a monster, " Aarav is quick to cut in. "An idiotic ape, maybe. But a monster? No. You make mistakes and behave like a child, but at the end of the day, you make things right, and that's just who you are. So go make things right with Kriya."

"Because I totally deserve her forgiveness," Rey snipes, rolling his eyes.

"Hey, I never said anything about her forgiving you. Believe me, if anyone knows how to hold a grudge, it's Kriya. But that doesn't mean that you shouldn't at least try."

Rey sighs in defeat. "You're right, you always are. I may not deserve her forgiveness, but she deserves my sincerest apologies."

"Well if it makes you feel any better, out of the two us, you definitely have a better chance of getting into Kriya Shekhawat's good books."

"Does Kriya not like you?"

"Not particularly, no."

"But you're so awesome!"

"Yeah, but she thinks I'm a bad influence on Taani."

Rey snorts. "I have a feeling that Taani's not the good girl her big sister and everyone else thinks she is."

"She's really not, but how'd you know?"

"Because yesterday she was violent, raging. Don't get me wrong, Saara was too, but in a different way. Taani looked like she was about to murder me, and I wouldn't put it past her. She's a wildcard, you don't know when she'll snap or strike in true Taani Shekhawat fashion."

"Did she really punch the wall in?"

"Better it than my face."

"Wall hater."

The two burst out laughing as they get up.

"Don't you have class?" asks Rey, raising an eyebrow.

"My first class is at ten, you just missed yours." Rey's widen so much that they look as if they were about to bulge out of their sockets. He runs towards his class, while yelling, "Shit, shit, shit,  _fucking_ shit!" as Aarav continues to cackle in the background before heading towards his car.

* * *

Saara and Karan plop down in the canteen in front of their friends with identical frowns on their faces.

"Okay, you two looking Siamese twins means something is really wrong," remarks Nisha.

Kriya, Taani, and Arjun who were there for the disaster that was APS, try hard not to laugh at their friends' dilemma.

"So, for our next project," Saara begins to explain, "Hitler didi assigned us a social scientist, because we couldn't choose one in time, and his name is Sigmund Freud, the psychologist with the dumbest, most useless theories on the planet, which we found out about because of our research period today."

"Other social scientists, better ones, took the basis of his work, ignored all the other crap he spat out, and made it better," Karan continues to say, "so we wanted to change our social scientist and maybe do one of the other ones, so in turn, Professor Ananya flipped the fuck out -"

"- and started lecturing us on being mature adults while she was the one yelling at us in front of the entire class for asking a simple question."

"We requested – note, not demanded, requested – to change our social scientist, and instead of calmly telling us flat out no -"

"- she blew a gasket!"

The others tried to hide their smiles – Arjun and Nisha by drinking coffee, Kriya by eating a sandwich, and Taani by slowly eating her Greek yogurt – as they watched Saara and Karan finish each other's sentences while they ranted, something they hadn't seen in a while.

"Guys, thoughts?" they say, still frustrated and not noticing how in sync they were.

"Vrushi and I chose Karl Marx because we're smart like that, so can't relate," says Nisha.

"Where is Vrushika anyway?" Kriya wonders out loud.

"Speak of the devil and the devil is here!" They're all startled to see Vrushika sit down in front of them with a bright smile on her face.

"Someone's happy this mor – wait, is that a new haircut?" asks Saara, noticing that her cousin's long locks had been replaced by a long bob.

"Right, you and Arjun didn't get a chance to see it because I left early to study for our first Economics quiz, which I totally aced by the way, hence the smile."

"When exactly did you have time to get a haircut?" asks Kriya.

"Last night – Sharon di did it for me."

"Why the sudden change?" asks Arjun, crossing his arms over his chest as he looks at his cousin suspiciously.

"Why the sudden influx of questions?" Nisha retorts, seeing Vrushika fidget nervously.

Taani, also noticing Vrushika's nervousness, making a mental note to talk to her about it later, adds, "Yeah guys, it's just a haircut. So she wanted a change, we never interrogated Nisha when she got hot pink streaks in her hair, no matter how thin they may have been."

"Exactly! And wow, would you look at the time – we've got Economics, let's go!" Nisha grabs Arjun by the arm as Taani pushes Kriya and Saara out the door before any of them could further question Vrushika, who lets out a breath of relief.

Karan on the other hand, chuckles as he watches the others leave – some forcibly – shaking his head as he turns to Vrushika and asks, "Shall we head to Business Management?"

"Gladly," sighs Vrushika, as they both get up and head out of the canteen…

Where Vrushika bumps into Swayam.

"Hi!" they both say at the same time.

Karan simply looks back and forth between the two of them before telling Vrushika, "I'll see you in class," and leaving.

Swayam and Vrushika stay silent for the longest time… and the lack of students in the hallway wasn't exactly helping! Swayam decides to break the awkward silence by saying, "Nice hair."

Vrushika blushes, unconsciously tugging on her hair, suddenly wishing her long hair was there to hide her slightly pink cheeks. "You think?"

Swayam reaches for Vrushika's hand, removing it from her hair as he tucks said hair behind her ear. "Yeah, I do."

He then proceeds to ruin the moment by asking, "But why the sudden change?"

Vrushika groans in frustration. "God! Why does everyone keep asking me that?"

Swayam raises his hands in the air, as if to surrender. "Just curious."

"Yeah, well curiosity killed the cat."

"Did wonders for Nancy Drew."

Vrushika sighs as she tries to brush past Swayam, but he was having none of that as he steps back in front of her, stopping her from leaving.

"Swayam -"

"No, do not 'Swayam' me right now. I need to know if you're okay, and it's not because of the hair – okay maybe it's because of the hair – but it's also because of how your mood was last night."

"What are you talking about? I was fine last night."

"Not for the second half! Something set you off, you were… distant, nervous, uncomfortable even."

"I was just tired -"

"You were certainly not tired! I know when you're tired – it's when your eyes are half open and you start to stumble and you have this peaceful smile on your face. You were feeling weird because you were fidgeting and you were jumpy and you kept a three feet distance from everyone around you."

He was right. As usual, Swayam was right about everything, but Vrushika was not in the mood for Swayam to analyze every little thing she did and uncover the mystery behind her past.

"I have to get to class. See you later." Vrushika walks away as fast as her legs would take her, but Swayam makes no attempt to stop her. She will most definitely be seeing him later.

Unbeknownst to Swayam and Vrushika, a certain Rai Prakash sibling had witnessed the entire exchange, and had decided to go straight to the root of the problem – Shivam Dutta.

Finding Shivam had been a piece of cake – they had Business Management together – but before Shivam could step foot in class, Sharon grabbed him by the arm and dragged him away.

Shivam widens his eyes in shock as he tries to break free out of Sharon's clutches. "Sharon?! God, what the hell is wrong with you? Wait, don't answer that. Just let me go so I can get back to class."

"Boy please. You and I both know that we could pass this class in our sleep. Now keep your mouth shut and just follow me, mainly because you have no choice."

Shivam ignores her, screaming at the top of his lungs, flailing his arms and legs around like a crazy person. "Kidnapper! Does no one see this mad woman kidnapping me in order to give me the most torturous death known to humankind?"

"Oh my god, shut up!" But Shivam wouldn't stop, which left Sharon with only one option: clamping his mouth shut with the palm of her hand as she shoved him into the supply closet. Once they're inside, she removes her hand from his mouth and locks the door.

"Well this brings back memories," remarks Shivam. Sharon ignores him, pretending as if that comment didn't affect her at all, in any way possible.

"What did you say to my cousin?"

"You have a lot of those, you've got to be more specific."

"Vrushika! What did you say to Vrushika last night?"

Shivam furrows his eyebrows, wondering what Sharon could possibly be talking about, until realization hits him. "Is this about me suggesting that she has feelings for Swayam? Because she totally does."

"Oh my god, you see it too?"

"They don't do much to hide it,"

"I mean, Swayam I can see, but I haven't really noticed Vrushika express anything that would insinuate that she had romantic feelings for Swayam."

"Other way around for me – Vrushika looks at him as if he brought the entire solar system to her feet. Swayam looks about the same to me."

"Wait, Swayam said Vrushika started acting strangely after you guys danced together. Is that all you said to her?"

"Yeah."

Sharon racks her brain as to why Vrushika was behaving so strangely, and Shivam's revelation had just made things even more confusing for her. Shivam, noticing Sharon biting her lip as she stares at her feet, immediately understands that she's thinking. And being Shivam, he decides to disrupt her process.

"Did you think that I said something to upset her?"

Sharon looks up at him, mildly annoyed that he'd ruined her concentration. "Well, yeah! She only became upset after dancing with you, so obviously that's where my mind is going to wander off to."

"Obviously."

"Okay, I can do without you and your general sass and snark routine. Door's right in front of you, I'm sure you know how to unlock it, uh buh bye!" Shivam shuts his eyes in order to calm down before unlocking the door and marching out of the supply closet in a huff, leaving Sharon in there to wonder what the hell was wrong with her cousin.

* * *

Rey's POV

It was time for the moment of truth, to see who's best to lead St. Louis's student body for the next three – or four in Kriya's case – years.

Fuck me.

I look over to Kriya, who, in true Kriya fashion, was jumpy, jittery, bouncing on her heels as she paced back and forth, probably going over potential debate topics and arguments in her head like the perfectionist she is, taking a five-second water break every now and then. I, on the other hand, kept walking around in a circle with my hands behind my head as I took deep breaths in and out in order to stay calm and focused.

Except I wasn't. I couldn't think about the debate when Kriya's deer-caught-in-headlights face from last night kept appearing in my head – god, it was stamped in my brain like a permanent tattoo. I had to apologize before I went crazy and had a mental breakdown before the debate even started. I tried to walk towards Kriya, except her fifty bodyguards were surrounding her, as half of them sent me death glares, and the other half disapproving glances.

I'm conflicted as to which is worse.

I ended up having help in the form of Swayam and Shivam spotting Sharon and Vrushika respectively, and walking over to talk to them. Then there was Vicky, stealing Neha away from the rest of them so they could have all of five minutes to be together before anyone notices.

Honestly, are they even trying?

Nisha and Aashi were craving food, as they usually do at 2:43 PM, and Arjun and Bharat followed to help them the carry the copious amount of food that they would end up getting. All I had to worry about now were… Taani, Saara, and Karan. The worst of the worst.

Mental breakdown it is!

Okay, no, I can do this. I'll just make up an excuse to get Kriya away from them. I take a deep breath as I make my way towards them, sparking Taani, Saara and Karan into defense mode – and rightfully so, as much as I want to roll my eyes at their dramatics.

"Um, RDX sir wanted to go over some rules and regulations of the debate with us in his office," I tell Kriya. Her friends look at me suspiciously, but Kriya simply starts walking onward without exchanging so much as a hello – as expected – while I proceed to trail behind her.

Halfway there, I call out, "Wait!"

Kriya turns around to face me.

"What?"

"I lied. RDX sir doesn't really need to see us, I just needed an excuse to talk to you."

"To talk to me?" asks Kriya, eyebrows raised and arms folded over her chest - which I'd learned was a defense mechanism.

"Yes, to apologize – hey is that the ring Swayam got you for Raksha Bandhan last year?"

Kriya looks confused, taken aback by my question as she squints her eyes at me. "What - yeah, why?"

"I just don't think I've ever seen you wear it is all. I thought you didn't like it."

"I'm not much of jewelry person, as you can probably tell, but this ring's an exception. I keep it in my bag for good luck, but once in a blue moon, I'll decide to put it on for that little bit of extra luck."

"So what I'm hearing is, you like it?"

"I love it to pieces, yes, why?"

"Because I helped pick it out."

"You did not!"

"I swear on Footloose I did."

"Ooo, swearing on Footloose? Must be serious."

We both start to laugh - a clear icebreaker. Wait, why did we need an icebreaker again?

"We were talking about something else, weren't we?" I ask her.

"Yeah, you were about to apologize to me," she tells me as I groan.

"Honestly, fuck me and my short attention span."

"Hey, Saara has a pretty short attention span too."

"Yeah, except hers is worse because she's not aware of it, unlike myself – and I'm getting off topic again, I am so sorry."

"Please tell me  _that's_  not your big apology."

"It's not, I promise. Look, I'm not the best with apologies. I can't do big heartfelt apologies like Swayam, and I can't do little things to show you how sorry I am like Saara. But I can tell you that I know what I did wrong, I know that what I did was so wrong on so many levels and that if I didn't apologize to you I would lose my mind. You didn't deserve what I did to you, it was cruel to not only humiliate you in public, but to also be so physically rough with you. I should've just let it go after you slapped me, I knew why you slapped me and it was an accident, but I lost it like the idiot I am and also, is your arm okay, because again, physically rough."

"Rey, I'm absolutely fine, physically, and now emotionally and mentally," Kriya assures me, "thank you."

"Not gonna' tell me to say it like I mean it?" I jokingly ask, referring to what Kriya had said to me the first time we met.

"You did mean it," is all she says, a slight smile appearing on her face, before walking away.

Alright, I apologized. So why the hell is Kriya Shekhawat still in my head?

Narrator's POV

It was time for the debate. Rey and Kriya were both on stage in the auditorium, confident smiles on their faces – although they were dying on the inside – standing behind their podiums, notes in front of them, and bottles of water at their feet.

"Alright!" Principal Shenoy's voice booms into his mic. "Welcome to the St. Louis college General Secretary election of 2016. Our candidates are, Reyaansh Singhania – second-year student, member of the Dazzlers dance team, and quite possibly the most helpful person at this college – and Kriya Shekhawat – first-year student, leader of the Weaklings, a dance team that she herself founded, and already top of her class, as she has always been ever since she first started school.

Moving on to the debate itself, here is how things will work – I will pose a question for one of the two candidates, and then ask the other to give their rebuttal. Also, if one candidate is unable to answer a question, then the other candidate is free to answer. Let's begin with Reyaansh – what do you think is the biggest problem right now with this college?"

"Only one problem?" The crowd laughs, as Kriya bites back a smile.

"Go crazy Mr. Singhania, point out all the flaws of this flawless institution."

Rey tries to keep a straight face at his principal's sass – it was so wrong, yet so right. "Well firstly, let's talk renovations and funding. The basketball team, both girls and boys, have been wanting their nets to be replaced for the longest time. The girl's field hockey team deserves more funding because they are working just as hard as the boys, yet their equipment and uniforms aren't as up to date as they boys' are. The chairs in the canteen are falling apart, and despite the fact that our canteen has the coolest design and sitting on pipes is great, but there are only so many pipes, and  _so_ many students. Also, the pre-med students have been asking for a more hands-on learning experience, and rightfully so."

Principal Shenoy looks pleasantly surprised by Rey's answer and his ideas. He then turns to Kriya and says, "Rebuttal?"

Kriya, unlike Principal Shenoy and rest of the student body, was not impressed. "What about the biggest problem at this college right now? What about the Dazzlers versus the Weaklings? Any bright ideas on how to improve that,  _Mr. Singhania_?"

 _Oh crap_ , is what everyone, including faculty members, has playing in their heads on a loop. Sharon looks ready to either murder Kriya – for putting her on the spot like that – or hug her – for helping Rey because her statement could work in his favor as well since it seems like a personal attack.

Rey is at a loss for words. "Well, I – um…"

"Miss Shekhawat," Principal Shenoy cuts in, "why don't  _you_  tell us your thoughts on the subject?"

Kriya ignores the sound of her friends groaning and slapping their foreheads – she knew what she was doing. "Well, I for one think that this is the biggest problem at our college for a number of reasons. Actually, only two reasons. One, segregating students based on economic and social status is not only ethically and morally incorrect, but also an inconvenience to both groups of students. The Dazzlers will grow to develop a superiority complex and expect everything to be handed to them a silver platter because they are rich, and when their safety blanket of money is pulled from underneath them, they aren't going to be prepared for what comes after. Weaklings, on the other hand, will grow to feel worthless and less than, just because they don't have as much money as those around them. They will forever be afraid of chasing after success because they will never have enough faith in themselves and their own skills.

Two, no one student should have that much power and the ability to dictate what others can and can't do. This divide was created by one student, and one student only, and this student thinks that just because they have gotten away with creating this divide, they can get away with controlling the lives of all their fellow students. So, students of St. Louis, I ask you, what really is your biggest concern – the fact that our sports teams aren't getting what they want, or the fact that we have been under the thumb of one student for far too long, and that we deserve better?"

Before Principal Shenoy could say anything, Rey beats him to it. "Are you making light of the importance of students getting what they deserve, such as new equipment, support from the board, and the educational experience of a lifetime?"

Kriya scoffs, shaking her head in disbelief. "All I'm saying is, we should be looking at the bigger picture. The mental health and future of the entire student body is surely more important than a few groups of students and new furniture."

Rey smirks right when he hears the two magic words: more important. "Miss Shekhawat, are you implying that one problem is more important than another?" Rey mentally gives himself a hi-5 as he sees Kriya's eyes widen in realization. "As the general secretary, all problems should be seen as equal. No problem is too big, just as no problem is too small. And are you aware of the  _importance_  of the new sports equipment and chairs? I mentioned those issues because of safety reasons, and the equality you seem to be so keen on preaching about.

The nets are flimsy, practically breaking apart. The teams can't even use them because of safety precautions. What are they supposed to do? Not practice for the entire season? The chairs are the same story. They can't handle people's weight, the material has been causing scrapes and bruises and cuts for weeks now. What are people supposed to do, sit on the floor – which is very clean – but come on! And finally, this college wants the best for all its students, as do I, which is why I feel we should be listening to what the pre-med students need and start paying more attention to them. Your problem, on the other hand, seems more personal if anything."

"So my wanting equality for all students is suddenly 'personal,' is that what you're trying to say? Are you agreeing with the fact that those of us who are considered as weaklings don't deserve the right to be treated as equals and be given the same opportunities that the dazzlers are given? Or is it simply that you are conflicted between doing the right thing, and your own selfish feelings?"

"Miss Shekhawat, I would just like to remind you to remain calm and not attack me with your outlandish behavior."

"Mr. Singhania, I can assure you that I am perfectly calm, and I am most certainly not trying to attack you, nor is my behavior outlandish."

"That death glare you're sending my way proves otherwise."

"You still haven't answered  _any_  of my questions -"

"Deflecting -"

"If anyone's been deflecting, it's you."

Principal Shenoy looked like he was going to have a heart attack.

Taani and Saara glance at each other knowingly. This is exactly what they'd known was going to happen. As smart they're trying to make themselves sound, Taani and Saara know that the two idiots they've grown to love and cherish don't know what the hell they're doing – that's why they keep trying to shift the spotlight onto the other person. Sure they believe all that stuff that they're talking about, but Kriya doesn't want to admit that Rey's right and she doesn't think that all the funding issues are important – heck, she didn't even know about them! And Rey certainly doesn't want to admit that he's too afraid of losing Sharon to take a stand, and that he is selfish – because he cares more about his friend than his peers.

Saara gives Taani a nod, and she knows exactly what to do. Taani raises her hand up in the air with a bright smile, as if she wasn't going to unleash hell on Earth, and calls out, "Hi, excuse me, Principal Shenoy?"

Principal Shenoy was no fool. He knew that look, it's the same look he's gotten from Sharon Rai Prakash – the devil herself – on many occasions when she's wanted something. Yet, he simply says, "Yes?"

"Is it time for the student body to get to ask some questions? Because I know that I have a lot. May I?" Taani gestures to let the principal know that she wanted to take his place on the podium, which he happily granted her.

"Be my guest Miss Shekhawat." Principal Shenoy's done his research – he  _knows_  how to not tick off Sharon Rai Prakash and Taani Shekhawat, the two most dangerous young women that he has come across. Mafia's got nothing on those two.

He happily walks off – who are we kidding, the man skips – the podium, letting Taani take his place, cue cards and all.

"Alright guys! So first off, I have a question for you Mr. Singhania. I love how you've talked about our sports teams and the pre-med students, truly moving. But what about the others?"

Rey looks genuinely confused. "Um, the business students have no complaints, the social science majors love what they're learning, and the dancers have a wonderful studio equipped with surround sound speakers."

"Yes, but what about the art students?"

"What are you talking about? The drama students were provided with new lighting equipment just last week."

 _Hook, line, and sinker_ , thinks Taani, shaking her head. "Mr. Singhania, I'm talking about the  _other_  art students. Painters, sculptors, filmmakers, photographers, musicians… heck, even the writers can't catch a break here! St. Louis has promised each different talent the education of a lifetime and instead, they've all been grouped together under one program, with one instructor, little to no material, and worst of all, no opportunities. Not a single one of them has been able to learn or pursue what they've come here to do. So I'm asking you, Mr. Reyaansh Singhania,  _what_  are you going to do about it?"

Rey looked at Taani as if she were speaking Chinese. This was news to him, news he was not prepared to hear, much less speak about.

"I… I don't know." Both Taani and Rey could practically  _hear_  Kriya smirking, causing Taani to snap her head towards her, wiping her cousin's smirk right off her face.

"I have questions for you as well Miss Shekhawat. You keep talking about the divide that Miss Sharon Rai Prakash has created," Sharon raises an eyebrow at Taani mentioning her name - it was a bold move, one which Sharon was clearly impressed by, "yet I'm not hearing anything about a solution. Yes, you have stood up to her, and you're going against her by creating your own dance team, but what has that done? Has what you've done, changed anything, anything at all? No, no it hasn't. All it's done is aggravate Miss Rai Prakash, and create a bigger divide. So, in the end, Miss Shekhawat, despite what you might believe, you haven't stopped this divide – you've contributed to it."

Taani could hear the 'Ooos' and the cries of 'damn' and 'oh snap.' Special shout out to Sharon screeching and snorting "You go Glenn Coco!" But Taani ignored them all as she continued. There was a lot more where that came from!

"Look at you two. Both of you have so much passion and love dedicated towards this college, and you could've made great general secretaries, really. There was just one thing stopping you – an ego the size of Sharon's Rai Prakash's heels." As if one cue, Sharon throws a heel at Taani, which she catches with ease, proceeding to hold it up as a visual reference. "Poor Principal Shenoy could barely get through one question, let alone the six other that he had prepared for you!" Principal Shenoy's snores are heard from the back of the auditorium. "The two of you have made a joke of this election, and what's worse, is that neither one of you even wants this. If you did, then honestly answer me this – if it ever came down to your dance team or duties as a general secretary, what would you choose?"

Rey and Kriya glance at each other and sigh. They can't lie, they really can't.

"Dance."

"And there you have it. The reality that would become the fate of the college if either of these two ever became our general secretary. And, this is not me saying that they wouldn't do a good job – they most certainly would. But do they care about their duties as much as their dance? Not in this lifetime. Now, if anyone has any further questions, I'm sure Rey and Kriya would be more than happy to stay here and answer them. Thank you for your time, you've been a wonderful audience!"

If Taani could drop the mic, she most certainly would, but instead, she walks off stage and down the aisle going down the middle of the auditorium, as people clap and cheer - with Sharon getting her heel thrown back at her, which she struggles to catch, but she can't even be mad. If this election had taught her anything, it was that Taani Shekhawat can fuck up your day like no other, even if you're family.

* * *

After that mess of an election, both Rey and Kriya needed a breather - which they found in the form of Aarav and Karan respectively.

Aarav and Karan were simply trying to watch the entire series of Brooklyn Nine-Nine for the hundredth time, ketchup chips and all, when both their phones rang. They glance at each other warily as they see the names that show up, sighing as they answer their phones.

"Hey Aansh, what's up?" says Aarav, just Karan says, "Hey Kriya!"

"The election," both Rey and Kriya say.

Aarav and Karan turn to look at each other strangely, covering their phones with their hands.

"Did she just say the election?" Aarav whispers.

"Yeah, Rey too?"

"Uh huh. Weird right?"

"Freaky is more like it."

"Like you and Saara are any better."

"You and Taani are the worst."

"Dude, shut the fuck up," is the last thing Aarav says before they get back to their respective phone conversations.

"You were saying, Aansh?"

"What about the election Kriya?"

"The election was a disaster man! Taani made sure that neither I, nor Kriya, would be gaining the title of General Secretary anytime soon."

"Oh, yeah, I forgot to mention – Taani's a savage! Did she do a mic drop?"

"No, really? Thanks for the fyi buddy."

Kriya, on the other hand, had a different focal point. "I am never speaking to Taani again!"

"Girl, that is like a day in Shekhawat sister time and you know it."

"Shut up Karan."

Aarav and Karan look at each other again, placing their phone's case facing up on their chests.

"Is Kriya mad at Taani?"

"Uh huh. Is Rey annoyed by you?"

"Yup."

"Again, freaky," Karan says, before they get back to their respective friends.

"Anyway," Rey continues, not even noticing that his friend had just ignored five minutes of their conversation, "Kriya -"

"Did you apologize to her?"

"Of course I apologized to her. She forgave me too!"

That was exact time Karan decided to scream at the top of his lungs, "WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU FORGAVE HIM?!"

Aarav, who had fallen onto the floor, looks up at his friend and hisses, "Karan, what the hell?!"

Karan, ignoring Kriya's complaints about shattered eardrums – like she's one to talk – demands, "Did Rey just say that Kriya forgave him?"

Aarav rolls his eyes. "Dude, is that why you're freaking out?"

"No, it's clearly because I just realized that I just sex with that girl from last week on your bed and flipped the mattress over instead of changing the sheets."

Aarav's eyes widen in alarm. "Wait, what -" He doesn't get to finish due to his cousin Alya barging into his room, hands on her hips and murder on her face.

"Aarav Saxena, what the hell is going on here?! I have a test to study for!" She tries to look menacing, but the girl was wearing sparkly PJs and bunny slippers, honestly, all she was missing was a tiara.

"Blame Karan."

Karan glares at Aarav before sheepishly glancing at Alya. "Sorry Alya, that was me."

Alya smiles at him, sighing as she begins to say that it's fine, when Aarav cuts in. "I never complain about you and your band practicing until three in the fucking morning."

"Because that's band practice, it's necessary."

"Cabir getting so wasted that he was burping the alphabet as Mukti played around with the sparkly pink dance ribbon from when you were five, is necessary?"

"It was a music video!" Alya protests in defense, mentally reminding herself to kick friends' asses the next time that she saw them.

"Sure it was."

"Shut up Aarav," is all Alya says before heading back to her room, and Karan snorts. Aarav rolls his eyes, shaking his head as he gets back on the bed, getting back to Rey, much like Karan gets back to Kriya.

"Aarav, was that noise? It sounded like that goat from the goat video."

Aarav tries his best not burst out laughing, keeping his composure as he says, "Nothing, it was nothing. So, Kriya forgave you?"

"Yeah, we had a moment, but now we hate each other again."

"Wait, what?"

Meanwhile, Karan was just as confused as Aarav. "Wait, why do you hate each other again?"

"Um, hello? Were you not there for the debate?"

"Kriya, it was just a friendly debate."

"Excuse you, there was nothing just or friendly about it. He was completely wrong and overdramatic."

"She was verbally attacking me and making things personal like the immature brat she is."

"But maybe it was my fault too," they both say at once.

"Explain, please," pleads Aarav.

"Totally not following this," Karan informs her.

Aarav hears Rey sigh on the other end before he goes on to explain, "Some part of me kind of wanted to argue with Kriya." His voice is guilty, like that time he ate the chocolates that Bharat had bought for Aashi, or when he scratched her car.

Man has he done a lot of things to his twin sister!

"You  _wanted_  to argue with her?" Aarav asks, his tone skeptical.

"Yeah. I don't know what it is, but whenever I get the opportunity, I want to argue with Kriya. I want to start shit, fight back, bicker like my parents do every single time they play Scrabble. Something about her gets me pumped up, excited – she gets my adrenaline rushing every time she has that fiery look in her eye, like she's about to conquer the world… and I just want to stop her at every turn."

 _Oh boy_ , thinks Aarav, turning his head towards Karan, who looked like he needed the help of the entire Elite Academy faculty to figure out what the hell Kriya was going on about.

"So you wanted to argue with him?"

"It's really weird and stupid, but when it comes to Rey, my usual competitive drive skyrockets! Every time he speaks, I just want to fight back, push back – make his head explode from my general awesomeness. His twinkly eyes, those furrowed eyebrows – that goddamn smirk on his face! All of that makes me want to question him at every turn, keep him on his toes, catch him off guard – god, I don't know."

Karan and Aarav nod at each other knowingly. This was not a problem for them.

"You know what Aansh? I've got this test to study for, I'll talk to you later. Also, you're insane, bye!"

"Kriya, I need to hang up before Saara finds a way to strangle through my computer for not helping her with our assignment. Bye, I think you need to see a therapist, see you tomorrow!"

They hang up their phones before Rey or Kriya could get a word in.

"I'll text Saara," says Karan.

"I'll text Taani." But before either of them can send their texts, they groan as realization smacks them upside the head as if it were possessed by Nisha Sen herself.

"I'll text Saara," says Aarav.

"And I'll text Taani."

Who says boys aren't smart and considerate?

* * *

Taani and Saara were sitting on Saara's bed, belting out Moana's flawless solo, when both their phones beep.

"It's Aarav," says Saara, looking confused. Sure she and Aarav are friends, but not texting with actual words friends. Memes, gifs, maybe even emojis? Sure! Actual words? Not since two months ago when he had questions about their chemistry exam.

"I've got Karan," says Taani, furrowing her eyebrows in confusion, wondering as to when she'd even given Karan her number.

Probably when he needed someone to bail him out of a problem, and she was drunk enough to say yes.

"Did he tell you to talk to Kriya?" asks Saara.

"No, he's telling me to talk to Rey. I'm sorry, did he suddenly forget that where I had punched the wall in was a mere millimeter away from Rey's ear?"

"Well, Rey and I still need to talk, clear the air… maybe punch him in the face? I think that's why Karan wants you to talk to him. Well, that, or he wants to watch you beat the crap out of it – don't do it, honey, please."

"I won't beat him up… berate him, totally! But physically hurt him? Haven't decided yet. Anyway, it's probably best if you talk to di. I don't think she's going to be talking to me anytime soon."

"She'll get over it." Saara gives Taani an assuring smile as she puts her arm around her. "You did the right thing, like you always. She'll understand, eventually."

"Yeah, well right now she's still icing me out."

"Wanna' hide out here for the weekend?"

"I do, but it's probably best if I go home and face the music." Taani gets up, already out the door, popping her head back in to say, "Our boys are smart. Not the most considerate, but smart." Saara chuckles, nodding her head as she watches Taani leave.

The weekend was a mess. Kriya was still icy, Taani and Saara had yet to talk to Rey and Kriya, Saara and Rey still hadn't talked things over, and no one knew what was wrong with Vrushika.

Monday hit, and it was time to hear the results of the election. Everyone had gathered in the auditorium, as Principal Shenoy prepared for the shitstorm that was about to hit when he announced the winner.

"Alright. The teachers and I, along with the rest of the faculty, have counted all the votes. Now, this result may come as a shock to some of you, so I request that you please remain calm. And the winner is…"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Musical Inspiration: Smile by The Royal Concept, Can't Let Go from The Next Step, Ghost by Halsey, Just The Girl by The Click Five, Give it Up by Liz Gillies and Ariana Grande, and Most Girls by Hailee Steinfeld


	22. Welcome to Student Council!

It was a disaster. Right after Principal Shenoy announced who the new general secretary was going to be, and after he quite literally ran for the hills, chaos erupted in the form of one Sharon Rai Prakash.

"She wasn't even running for the position, she never campaigned or worked hard for this – what the fuck is wrong with you people?! Taani Shekhawat, for real?"

Yup. Taani Shekhawat was officially named the new general secretary of St. Louis – a job she didn't even want in the first place – and she was about to have a meltdown. This news only aided in straining her relationship with her sister – which was just fan-freaking-tastic, by the way!

She slithered through the crowd, heading for Principal Shenoy's office – she had to set this whole thing straight because right now, Taani would rather make nice with Sharon, or hell, make out with Rey (gag), than be the general secretary of St. Louis.

"Principal Shenoy?" she calls out, knocking before entering.

Principal Shenoy gives her a warm smile when he sees her. "Ah, Miss Shekhawat! Survived the apocalypse I see?"

Taani bites back a smile – the dude should be in comedy, why the hell is he a college principal?

"Just barely. I actually wanted to ask you -" Before Taani could finish what she wanted to say, muffled sounds of bickering coming from the other side of the door catch her attention. She glances at Principal Shenoy, who gives her a nod, indicating that she could open the door. When she does, rather than them standing before her as the average person does, she finds Kriya and Rey at her feet, making themselves comfortable on the floor, still arguing over who gets to knock on the door.

"Good grief!" Taani lets out an exasperated sigh, about to help the two bickering buffoons up, when a skyscraper named Swayam Shekhawat decides that now is the perfect time to show off how clumsy he is and trip over air, falling on top of Rey and Kriya, both of whom are smart enough to stop their squabbling and put a protective arm over one another.

Taani simply groans. "Bhai, for real? What the hell are you even doing here?" Before Swayam could even begin to formulate a response in his head, his back is crushed by Shivam's ass, thanks to Sharon shoving him and getting pulled down for the ride.

Taani looked like she was either about to cry or commit mass murder, as Principal Shenoy merely looked on in amusement, reminding himself to have popcorn handy for situations like this one.

What he says next leaves them all a confused hot mess. You know, even more than they already are.

"Welcome to student council kids!"

Taani looks at him as if he's finally lost it. "I'm sorry, I really, truly mean no disrespect, but this crazy bunch of incompetency is the best you could do? For real? Because I'm pretty sure one Vrushika Rai Prakash is literally a better choice than all five of these people." She couldn't even rack her brain over how this made sense, thanks to her fellow student council members who needed to watch all the episodes of Sesame Street to get their shit together.

Guess Taani would have to suffice as the only remotely mature adult for now.

"Sharon, why the actual  _hell_  do you have Shivam in a headlock, you crazy bitch? Let fucking go of him. Also, your effing pencil heels are digging into his spine – how are your feet still attached to your body? You know what, never mind, figuring out your secret to not dying while wearing skyscrapers on your feet for six hours a day, five days a week, is clearly the least of my problems."

She then focuses her attention on a certain cynical writer who her sweet, Labrador of a big brother is somehow friends with. "Shivam, get your goddamn elbow out of my brother's ear. And for the love of Krishnaji, Rey and Kriya, make up your fucking minds about going to jail for manslaughter or public indecency."

Actually listening to Taani for once in her life, Sharon lets go of Shivam's neck and gets up. Shivam breathes out in relief, following her lead, trying not to crush Swayam any more than he already had. Swayam slowly gets up as well, stretching to get his body back in order. Rey and Kriya, the root of this problem, send one last glare each other's way before getting up.

Taani sighs in relief now that the deformed human pyramid had been dismantled, turning her attention to Principal Shenoy.

"How are  _we_  your student council?"

"Well you see Miss Shekhawat, after you saved the day by hijacking the debate, you impressed a lot of people who then wrote your name on their ballots. Some people even crossed out Mr. Singhania and the other Miss Shekhawat's names and left some very colorfully intelligent insults, which I can assure you that I will be laughing at in my own time. That aside, since the actual candidates tied for about thirty votes each while you ended up with the rest, they will be sharing the role of assistant general secretary."

Kriya was still stuck on being called 'the other Shekhawat,' and while Rey knew that he shouldn't be surprised by Principal Shenoy's bluntness, thirty votes out of over a thousand students?

Taani gives him a slow nod, processing the information. "Okay, that I understand then. How do Goldilocks and Baby Bear fit in? I mean, Elsa over here is the cultural secretary, so what other positions do you even have?"

"Why am I Baby Bear?" an outraged Shivam cries out, glancing at Swayam to help him out, only to be met with a 'what can you do?' shrug.

"Because you're too you to be Papa Bear, and Bharat clearly deserves that title, fight me, Dutta."

"Yeah, no, I agree with that," says Sharon, nodding her head.

Principal Shenoy adds in his two cents, "I also approve."

Shivam throws his arms up in the air in frustration as Swayam gently pats him on the shoulder.

Glancing at the two of them, an absolutely horrendous, terrifying thought crosses Sharon's mind, causing her to shout, "NO!" damaging her vocal cords as she does on a regular basis.

She marches up to Principal Shenoy's desk and narrows her eyes at him. "Are they the ones you chose as my assistants whom I requested for because of Footloose and my workload?"

"That's right." Principal Shenoy looked oddly delighted for someone staring death in the face.

"Well, I do not approve of your choices!" She stomps her foot like a toddler who didn't get to stay up past their bedtime, crossing her arms over her chest in a huff.

"Hey!"

Hearing Swayam's voice, Sharon immediately spins around to clarify, "No, sweetie, you're fine, the one next to you needs to not be in my line of sight."

Satisfied, Swayam says, "I'm okay with that," earning him a grateful smile from Sharon and an aggravated slap to the back of his head from Shivam – which Swayam thinks is totally worth it when Sharon's smile is taken into consideration.

"Miss Rai Prakash," Principal Shenoy's voice brings everyone's attention back to him, "you have no more say in this. Mr. Shekhawat was my original choice to be your assistant, to avoid this exact situation, but since he is also participating in Footloose, I had no choice but to take Mr. Dutta into consideration as well. Besides, he was the cultural secretary before you, and now you get to be the cultural secretary, boss him around, have all authority over him."

Terrified by the gleam in Sharon's eye, Shivam yells, "Stop giving her ideas! Do you people even want to see me live to twenty-one?"

"When's your birthday again?" Taani asks.

"March 16th."

"Hope you enjoyed nineteen, because you're definitely not even going to live to see twenty!"

"Taani!"

"Hey, I want to see you live  _past_  twenty, maybe even like, eighty! I'm just reminding you that it might not happen - my condolences, in advance. I'll put the casket I bought for my brother to use." Kriya and Rey would've done a spit take right then and there if liquids were available. No one else seems all that affected by the statement.

"You actually bought the casket?" demands Swayam.

"Dude, I actually thought I was going to come home to Maasi drinking wine and watching 'How To Get Away With Murder' while your body decayed in the corner. Imagine my disappointment- I mean, relief, when only two out of three of those things happened."

Seeing Kriya nod as if Taani's casual references to murder suddenly made sense, Rey is quick to ask in a state of panic, "Principal Shenoy, is there anything else?"

"Yes, I have your first assignment as student council," he says, focusing his attention on Taani. "Miss Shekhawat, you made some great points about arts students not getting the opportunities that they deserve, but for them to get what they want, we need more money. We've spent so much money on other programs and extracurriculars, as well as new renovations every now and then, there was little to no money left over for the arts students. So, to raise said money, I want the student council to organize a charity function, preferably one that showcases the skills and talents of the arts students, so that those we invite will be convinced to donate to the program."

Taani's eyes light up at the idea of planning such a big event. "That is amazing, I have so many ideas."

"Wonderful, that's what I like to hear! The people made the right choice. Now, go off and discuss, I have dismissed you from all your morning classes for this."

As the new student council leaves, he hears Taani say, "How do you not have a single hair out of place from what is probably one of the most complex hairstyles I've ever seen?"

"I'm a Rai Prakash," is all Sharon had to say to be met with numerous groans and eye rolls – and a dreamy, starry-eyed look from Swayam.

Principal Shenoy smiles, thinking that this just might be his greatest decision ever.

* * *

While the new student council worked on not destroying each other, one Nisha Sen was concerned, concerned about her friend Vrushika who she loves with all her heart. Now, growing up, while they had all gotten along like one big messed up family, they all had their close friends who they would always gravitate towards. Saara had Rey, Nisha had Manik and Aarav, Sharon had Simmi and Aashi, Arjun had Alya, and Vrushika had Dhruv, Naina, and Harshad. But that did not mean that all was black and white. Nisha had Manik and Aarav, sure, but she was always close to Sharon, and more importantly, Vrushika.

Their friendship was an odd one that not a lot of people believed in, or were even aware of to begin with. Nisha was absolutely terrifying and Vrushika was an actual fucking ray of sunshine. To everyone else, Nisha Sen was the type of girl who would put the fear of God into one Vrushika Rai Prakash, one who would go out of her way to make her life a living hell because of ridiculous reasons like jealousy and family rivalry.

Bullshit.

Nisha and Vrushika bonded because they were the only two people who loved The Princess Bride, lived by all things Simple Plan – Dhruv and Naina's undying love for Green Day can suck it – and their mutual insecurity of being the inferior sibling.

Nisha had always been the ugly stepsister. Disha had better grades, Disha was loved by teachers and business partners alike, and Disha had two parents who doted on her and worshipped the ground that she walked on. Nisha was a stress case who put everything off until the last minute and tried to learn the entire course six hours before the exam. Nisha got on teachers' nerves, and Nisha had a father who treated her like scum and a mother who avoided her like the plague. Nisha had simply conformed to this idea that Disha would always be superior, so she gave in and stopped trying because honestly, what was the point?

Vrushika had a different approach to things. Her older sister is the epitome of perfection. Anya Rai Prakash is naturally, freakishly smart, she is the literal definition of the phrase 'she's beauty, she's grace, she'll punch you in the face.' When angered, Anya's a nightmare. Not in a 'throw a bitch fit that would make Sharon Rai Prakash beam with pride' sense, no no. Anya Rai Prakash is sneaky, devious, and has ruined someone's life within the span of a day with a simple tap of her phone. She carries herself with confidence at all times, never a hair out place – she's a china doll come to life and Vrushika was unsure as to whether she should be in awe, or resent her sister for life. The worst part is, she would hate herself if she didn't choose the former because her sister would lay her life on the line for her in the blink of an eye. So Vrushika went a third way – work her butt off and come out on top, which she did.

Regardless, that feeling of inferiority was always there, clawing its way into their hearts with absolutely no intention of leaving. Most of their conversations included Nisha ranting and bursting into tears, with Vrushika's occasional sniffles and nods of agreement; and to them, that was perfect. To them, no one else understood their jealousy, their self-loathing and their occasional suicidal thoughts as well as the other did, and no one ever will.

So when Vrushika showed up with the new hair yesterday, she was worried. It wasn't just hair, it was something bigger – something to do with one Harshad 'Satan' Saxena.

After word got out of Vrushika's personality transplant and downward spiral, Nisha took a whole two weeks off school – which she paid for later with a month of grounding, but it was totally worth it – to try and find out what the hell was up with her friend.

And boy did she ever!

Gone were the Disney princess curls and the painted on smile. Gone was that sparkle in her eyes and her ability to make the best out of any situation. The Vrushika that Nisha had come home to was a stranger – and she was having none of it. In true Nisha fashion, she made her friend a sandwich, sat her down on her bed and let her cry her heart out – an utter blubbering mess, screaming at the top of her lungs. Nisha's first idea was to key all three of Harshad's expensive cars… and then buy a sledgehammer and have at it Miley Cyrus Wrecking Ball style.

Unfortunately, due to the fact that Nisha's father would rather deny that she is his child than pay to keep her from going to jail, Vrushika convinced her that they should stick to legal ideas, so the first thirty suggestions that Nisha had were out. In the end, they didn't harm Harshad or his possessions in any way – much to Nisha's dismay – but Vrushika finally cracked a smile and for Nisha, that was good enough.

At least that's what she thought back then. Going to different schools in different cities, there was only so much Nisha could do for her friend other than call every time she gets the chance, text every time a teacher's back is turned, and scour the internet for memes and cutesy greeting cards that make her want to barf, except she knows Vrushika lives for them so she powered through regardless. All Nisha could really do was try to cheer her up, but that wasn't enough. Vrushika was still suffering and Nisha was beating herself up over it because there was nothing she could do to heal her friend's heart. Well, enough was enough.

Right after APS, the two girls had a free period, but instead of heading towards the library like they usually do, Nisha drags Vrushika to the terrace – her place of solitude.

Vrushika looks at her friend, confused. "Nish, what are we doing up here? I thought that heights made you nauseous."

Nisha, albeit slightly queasy, says, "You know exactly what we're doing here."

Vrushika sighs, visibly annoyed. "Is this about the hair? Honestly, would you all just –"

"Can it. The hair looks great, Sharon should really consider a career in hairdressing." Vrushika gives her a knowing look when she says 'Sharon' rather than 'Sharon di,' but decides to leave it alone for now. "That aside, you're forgetting that I know exactly what happened to make you do a complete personality transplant, so don't you dare try to fuck around with me of all people. Moving on, I thought you were doing good, Vrushi! You hadn't given Harshad and his entire miserable existence a single thought since, well, we started college, which is huge progress! What the hell happened?"

Vrushika wants to protest and lie and march off in a huff, but she can't because this isn't Sharon or Saara or Swayam. This is Nisha, who somehow between the breakdowns and heated discussions over boy bands and trips to the bowling alley where all they really did was eat greasy food until Bharat yelled at them, had fit herself into the role of Vrushika's best-friend like the holy grail of all puzzle pieces.

She bites her lips before she finally sighs. "It's stupid."

"It's not," Nisha is quick to retort in assurance.

"You don't even know what I'm going to say."

"I know that it's not going to be stupid. Your  _feelings_  are not stupid."

Vrushika lets a slight smile shine through before she begins. "It was the Rose Day party. Shivam said something and I just made a big deal out of it. It was a total mountains out of molehills situation."

Despite Vrushika's clear pleas of 'I'm being a total idiot, it's really no big deal,' Nisha holds her ground and demands, her tone firm, "Vrushika, what did he say?"

"Shivam mentioned how he noticed that I was showing signs of maybe having feelings for Swayam."

Nisha looked at her friend in shock. That was the last thing she expected to hear!

"Do you?"

"No! And even if I did,  _which I don't_ , he has been in love with my cousin for over a year, and known her for five. Feelings like that don't just go away because he decided to be besties with said cousin's mousey baby cousin, aka me, a mere month ago."

The minute Vrushika said the word 'cousin,' Nisha knew exactly what was up. Whether she had feelings for Swayam or not could be discussed later – scratch that, they will be discussed later because Nisha is effing relentless. Right now, the most important was to make sure that Vrushika doesn't fall back into that exact same downward spiral that she'd worked so hard to come out of.

"Feelings for Swayam aside, for now at least – don't you dare give me that look – I think that because Swayam is so in love with Sharon, you remembered Harshad's disgusting and completely inaccurate words about you being the Rai Prakash that no one likes – honestly, why can't I just throw him off a cliff already?"

Vrushika snorts. "Because you can't lift him, genius."

"Is that a grin I see?" Nisha gasps dramatically, swiping Vrushika's hat off her head, causing her to shriek and narrow her eyes towards the shorter girl.

"What the hell Nish?"

"You're not getting this back until you hear exactly what I have to say."

"Are you literally holding my favorite hat hostage?"

"Yes, and I regret absolutely nothing."

"You're ridiculous, and you have a death wish!"

"Aw, I love you too!"

"Literally, fuck off."

Nisha completely ignores Vrushika's murderous glares – that shit may work on Saara and Arjun, but Nisha did not find Vrushika to be menacing, at all. "So, Harshad… he's an idiot and you should forget about everything he said because one, none of it is true, two, it is all complete and utter bullshit, and three, as we've already established, he's an idiot."

"It's not that easy, Nish."

"I know it's not! But you can't keep shutting us all out. People are picking up on your mood, and if you know anything about our crazy band of misfits family, it's that they will not rest until they find out exactly what's bothering you, and when they do, Harshad will lose his sister – because Alya fucking adores you as much as I despise that dumb bitch – your sister will ruin him financially and make sure he loses his dignity in the process, and your cousins, along with mine, will  _slaughter_  him while Aarav and I hide his body. Now personally, I don't see anything wrong with that. You, on the other hand, are a much better person than I am, so obviously you don't want any of that to happen –"

"Get to the point," snaps Vrushika.

"The  _point_  is that you need to stop letting Harshad control your life! He is nothing, you hear me? He's a fucking parasite, a complete and utter waste of space, and I have had it with him being able to influence you with some shit that he said over a year ago. I get it, babe, you loved him and more importantly, you trusted him, and he broke you like it was nothing. But that in itself should be enough incentive for you to get him out of your system because he is a pathetic excuse for a human being, and frankly, I find it insulting that one's reaction to meeting him isn't to simply take a motherfucking club to his head."

"It's not just what he said, Nisha!" Vrushika practically screams, tired and frustrated, knowing that what her friend is saying makes complete sense, but all it makes her want to is break down and cry.

And she did. She drops down to the floor of the terrace, Nisha quick to follow, neither giving a shit about the actual shit that birds had left where they currently sat.

"It's the fact that someone who has known me my entire life, someone I grew up with, shattered my very soul. This is over ten, hell, maybe even fifteen years of friendship, of complete and utter comfort, bliss and fucking adoration that was erased within seconds. Why? That's all I want to know. Why would my best friend, who I thought that I knew inside and out, be so fucking cruel with me? Why did he hurt me? Is this how he's felt all these years? Was our entire relationship nothing but a joke to him? God, Nisha, is this how everyone –"

"No!" Nisha is quick to argue, reacting quicker than she ever has in her entire life. "Of course not, Vrushika, don't be crazy! We all love you, so much. I don't know what the hell is wrong with Harshad, but he can choke. I love you, okay? I love because you have the biggest heart out of anyone that I know, which clearly makes you the absolute best person in the world, I dare you to fight me on that."

Vrushika chuckles lightly through her tears as Nisha continues. "I love that you are an actual five-year-old when it comes to sleeping in, and that you are ready and willing to unleash hell on anyone that tries to wake you up before twelve in the friggin' afternoon – your dad, who absolutely thinks of you as his entire world, still has nightmares, and I couldn't be prouder. I love how passionate you are about dancing, and I think it's killing me to see you not do something you love more than it's killing you because you are as stubborn as a mule and flat out refuse to kick your stage fright to the curb like the asshole ex-boyfriend that it is. And I love that you're my best friend because you are so wonderful and I am the hottest of all hot messes, yet somehow you manage to find it within yourself to love me just as much as I love you.

And I'm not the only one. Your cousins love you and would kill for you, as would mine. Your sister loves you and would die for you in a heartbeat. Your parents, aunts, uncles – hell, my parents, who I didn't even know were capable of love, love you. Alya, Dhruv, Simmi, Vicky, Nilesh, heck even Mukti and Cabir love you. Kriya and Taani probably love you too by now. And you know what, so does Swayam. Maybe in the way that Shivam was hinting towards, and maybe not, but I know that he loves you regardless. You have so many people that love you beyond your understanding, so please, stop letting Harshad the dipshit Saxena tell you otherwise."

Vrushika almost knocks Nisha over as she practically jumps on her to give her a hug. "I love you too, Nish, murderous tendencies plus general weirdness and all! How would you like to go key  _one_  of Harshad's four cars?"

"He bought a fourth car?!" she accidentally screams right into Vrushika's ear, causing the taller girl to jump back with a start.

Nisha glances at her friend guiltily, but Vrushika simply stares at her, unblinking, before her face breaks out into a smile, causing both girls to burst out laughing.

Guess laughter really is the best medicine of all – at least if you're Nisha Sen and Vrushika Rai Prakash.

* * *

Taani and Swayam lasted for one full hour before caving in. Rey and Kriya were absolute children who fought over a frigging pencil, making Taani wish that she was babysitting those monstrous Vedant children instead, while Sharon and Shivam were just plain crazy and giving Swayam anxiety over having to end up being someone's alibi in a homicide.

Taani called Swayam over from the other side of the classroom, asking him to go out into the hall with her. Once outside, Taani says, "I feel like I'm dealing with actual five-year-olds."

Swayam rubs his temples in pain. "Same. Do you think mom will lend me her aspirin? I feel a migraine coming on."

"Five minutes with them feels like fifty years. I am now a sixty-eight-year-old woman."

"At least your brain is functioning to a point where you can still do basic math. Mine feels like soup."

"Alphabet soup?" Taani wiggles her eyebrows, playfully nudging her brother.

"Shut up." He pretends to be annoyed, but cracks a smile regardless.

"We can't go on like this, it's absolutely torturous!"

"Well, what do you propose we do? Try to get them to act like mature adults and actually expect them to get their shit together and work with each other?" It takes everything in him for Swayam to not burst out laughing at the idea, much less keep a straight face while expressing such a ridiculous thought.

Though Taani apparently saw nothing wrong with his statement as she exclaims, "That's it!"

Swayam looks at her, startled, as if his sister has just grown antlers and hooves. "What's it?"

"It's not about getting them to work with each other, it's about us working with each other."

"Explain, please. My brain is still alphabet soup."

"Ha!"

"Taani!"

"Fine! Okay, so your way won't work with Sharon and Shivam, and mine won't work with di and Voldemort, mainly because they both want to strangle me more than they want to strangle each other – which says a lot!"

It takes Swayam all of five seconds to catch onto his sister's plan. "So I'll handle Rey and Kriya, and you'll try really hard not to die at the hands of Sharon and Shivam because I can't have that on my conscious."

"Aw, you're so sweet. And yes, that is exactly what my plan is."

"You're a genius."

"I know, why do you think I'm maasi's favorite? Now let's go make sure the classroom is still in one piece."

"That's your biggest concern?!"

A beat later, he adds, "Wait,  _you're_  her favorite?!"

Taani completely ignores her brother, heading inside the classroom, straight towards Sharon and Shivam. She looks them both dead in the eyes and says, "Now look here Peter Pessimist and his psychotic bitch of a girlfriend –"

"Not off to the best start Freshbrat," drawls Sharon.

Rather than getting upset over the insult, Taani's eyes light up, a giddy smile on her face. "Ooo, is that new? I like it!"

Sharon's expression mimics that of Taani's at the younger girl's response. "Really? Cuz' I figured you already have so many nicknames for me, I should contribute to our animosity as well by coming up with something other than Freshling."

"Aw, that's so – wait, how the hell did this conversation start?"

"Yeah, how did we get here?"

"Aw, guys, continue! You're so adorable together," Shivam gushes sarcastically.

"Fuck off Dutta," both girls say in unison.

"And you're so in sync! Wardrobe-wise too."

"Wait, what are you talking about?" asks a now confused Sharon.

"Well, you're both wearing splashes of blue and silver in your outfits, combined with the white in Sharon's jumpsuit, and the black in Taani's dress, you're literally more coordinated than certain girl groups and celebrity couples, and they have professional stylists."

"Okay, he is to be ignored!" declares Taani, as Sharon nods furiously in agreement. Shivam simply rolls his eyes at their ridiculousness. He did not sign up for this bullshit.

"Anyway, I'm here because bhai's a wuss –"

"He's dealing with Rey and Kriya," Sharon points out, prompting Taani to snort.

"Their love for him trumps their mutual disdain for one another, which totally does not apply to me. Also, they're children, and you're maniacs."

"She's not wrong," Shivam tells Sharon, who grumbles as a sign of unwilling agreement.

"Now that we've got that out of the way, let's talk about the two of you driving my brother absolutely insane, kay?"

Once Taani sees that Sharon and Shivam have actually sat down, unwillingly ready to listen to her, she continues, speaking to Sharon first. "Sharon, you are the cultural secretary of this college, not a toddler. As much as I hate you, I'm not going to deny that you love this college and are damn good at what you do. So stop being such a child and get your shit together because over a hundred people are depending on our very first event as student council, so we can't be arguing amongst ourselves. Look, I may be the GS, but you're my CS. I need you to work with me here, alright?"

And it was in that moment that Sharon realized that no one was going to be a better GS than Taani Shekhawat. "Fine, freshbrat," she huffs, albeit letting out a small smile as she gives Taani a slight nod.

Taani lets out a sigh of relief – her entire plan depended on Sharon actually agreeing to work  _with_  her for once. She then turns her attention to Shivam, hoping that he'll do the same. "Shivam, I know that you don't want to be Sharon's assistant – I mean, you  _were_  the CS before her! But I also know how much this event means for you because you are one of those students that this event is setting out to help, along with a grand majority of your friends. Don't let all of that go to waste because you want to be petty and irritate Sharon to her grave, you are better than that. So work with Sharon, please? If  _I_  can do it, then why can't you?"

Shivam simply stares at her - the longer he stares, the deeper she dives into panic mode – until he shakes his head, finally getting up, giving a slow clap as a smile breaks out across his face. "Fuck, you are really good at what you do Shekhawat."

Taani's immediate reaction is to start smacking his chest. "Dutta, are you fucking kidding me right now?! You almost gave me a heart attack you ass!"

Shivam simply laughs, saying, "Come here you crazy bitch," before pulling her in for a hug.

"God, you are so short."

"Shut up, I'm taller than Rey!"

"Who isn't?"

"Aashi."

"Do you actually have a death wish?"

Meanwhile, Sharon was staring at the two before her with far-off, calculating look on her face, shifting in her seat as she suddenly felt slightly uncomfortable. She clears her throat, causing Taani and Shivam to turn their attention to her, curiosity evident on their faces.

"Um, maybe we should go check up on Swayam?"

"Yeah, or what's left of him knowing Rey and Kriya –"

"Shivam!" both girls cry out, cutting off whatever he was about to say next. They simply shake their heads at him, tugging on his arms and practically dragging him over to where the rest of their student council was.

Meanwhile, Swayam should have been having a much easier time than Taani, mainly because the individuals that she was dealing with were both criminally insane, and Swayam ended up dealing with his best friend and his baby sister…

Except he wasn't.

"Guys, if you could just listen to me for one second –" Swayam begins to say, only to be ignored as Rey and Kriya continue to scream at each other.

"Pineapple on pizza is insane, Rey, it's just wrong!"

"Kriya, I have seen you  _inhale_ cinnamon rolls, you have no right to judge my choice of pizza toppings."

"What does that even have to do with this conversation?"

"What does food have to do with planning a charity event?!" Swayam hollers.

"Okay, bhai, this is not about you," says Kriya, waving off her brother's comment.

"Yeah, butt out Swayam."

"That's  _it_ , sit down!" Swayam shouts, causing Kriya to immediately do as he says as her brother looked eerily similar to their mother when she was about to blow a gasket.

Noticing that Rey was simply glaring at Swayam like a petulant child, Kriya yanked him down to sit on the seat beside hers. He glances at her curiously, while Kriya simply narrows her eyes at him pleadingly - something he's noticed that she does when she really needs someone to just listen to her. Rey gives her a slight nod, simply looking back up at Swayam expectantly.

Swayam gives the two a biting smile, gritting out, "Since you two insist on acting like children, I am going to treat you like children until you decide to go back to being the semi-functioning adults that you actually are."

"Semi-functional?!" an offended Rey blubbers, resulting in Kriya smacking him on the shoulder, stopping him from digging an even deeper hole for himself.

"Please, calling you two semi-functional adults is quite possibly the nicest thing I could do."

"Not to mention that it's a bit of a stretch," Shivam pipes from behind Swayam, simply shrugging when his friend gives him an unimpressed glare.

Swayam turns back to the two five-year-olds in front of him, arms crossed over his chest like a disappointed father. "Alright, let's review shall we? The two of you wanted to run for general secretary, fine. Sharon unknowingly caused a misunderstanding between the two of you, but you've managed to move past that… or so we all thought because we forgot who we were dealing with - the two people most likely to be incapable of comprehending how to function like the adults that they're supposed to be. You behaved like absolute children during the debate, and you're behaving like absolute children now.

Being assistant general secretaries is your second chance to do exactly what you set out to do when you both initially ran for the position of general secretary, so don't blow it just because you're pissed at Taani! You're both mad at her, and now you're taking it out on each other, and since we've established that you're not exactly the most unpredictable of people, get whatever revenge scheme you've cooked up that would probably just blow up in your faces anyway out of your heads.

Rey, you care about this college, and Kriya, you believe that everyone should get the chance to fulfill their dreams. Focus on that rather how much you hate Taani, or how much you want to strangle each other. We need to be working as a team, and for that to happen, the two of you need to grow the hell up, are we clear?"

"Clear," they both sigh at once.

Swayam grins triumphantly as Sharon looks at him absolute awe.

"I am so attracted to you right now," she says breathlessly.

Swayam's grin widens. "Wait, really?"

There is a mix of groaning and eyes rolling, along with Taani throwing a pencil at her brother's head.

"Alright," Taani begins, "now that we're all more or less on the same page, let's think about what we can do for this charity function."

"Right," Sharon continues, sitting down across from Rey and setting her notebook out on her lap, "we want to be able to showcase everyone's skills and talents. Shivam, you're part of the very program we're trying to help, do you have any ideas?"

"Well, there are actually under thirty people in our program, most people have already given up by now, and we didn't even get any new freshers because no one's aware of the program to begin with. But we can still -"

Sharon cuts him off, smirking smugly at Taani, "Your 'over a hundred students are depending on you' comment seems to hold little meaning then, Freshbrat."

"Actually," Shivam ruins Sharon's split second of victory by coming to Tanni's rescue, "it does. Some students in the dance and drama programs are looking to double major in music, Broadway dreams and triple threats are what Tans was taking into account. We did originally start off last year with a hundred students, but most of them swapped to dance and drama. You shouldn't just focus on the students within the actual program Sharon, there are others who are dying to give it another shot if we can manage to improve it."

Sharon simply leans back in her chair with a huff. Team Taavam was becoming a royal pain in her ass - when did that even become a thing?!

"Thank you, Shivam," Taani says, smiling at him, causing Sharon to roll her eyes, making Rey snort and Swayam and Kriya to look at their cultural secretary curiously.

"Now, to continue off of where Shivam was oh so rudely interrupted, I think that the first thing we should be doing is finding talent around the school. Obviously there are those within the program, but there are also others as Shivam and I have both said, not to mention, because of the program being treated like shit, it's likely that a lot of people have no faith or motivation to participate."

"And what do you propose we do about that Miss Shekhawat?" Rey snipes, winking at Sharon, causing the frown on her face to immediately be replaced by a wide grin.

Taani ignores Rey's jibe entirely, focusing instead on the task at hand, much to Rey and Sharon's dismay. "Well, I was thinking that Shivam and I could work with Kriya and Sharon to get as many people as possible to showcase their talent. And to further show how important improving this program is to us, I was thinking that some of the film students could maybe do a video of everyone talking about why the arts matter to them, how much work it takes and why it's important for them to have this kind of support. How's the film department of the program by the way, Shivam?"

"Non-existent," Shivam admits. "We had two students last year, one dropped out and started to search for work instead, and the other got off the waitlist for SPACE. But I know that there are filmmakers here that just don't have the motivation to do anything solely because of the horror stories they've all heard about the program."

"We can work with that! Saara's a miracle worker with a camera and the right editing software," Kriya tells them excitedly.

"You're absolutely right!" Rey enthusiastically nods his head in agreement. "Saara went film camp too, she can absolutely put the video together, she loves this kind of stuff."

"And she's damn good at it too," Taani concludes. "So we all agree then, Saara's our best option for the video, and if she just has way too much on her plate, I'm still in touch with the guy who used to help Aarav and I film our videos for our website."

"You mean Vishesh who is obsessed with you and spends entire conversations simply staring at your breasts?" Kriya demands, eyebrows raised in concern.

"That creep?!" Swayam's voice raises an octave or two in shock, alarm evident on his face.

Taani simply rolls her eyes. "Vishesh is harmless, I can handle him. Believe me, I've dealt with worse."

"Oh, I believe you alright!" says Rey.

"For sure," adds Sharon.

"I could see it," Shivam tells her.

"See?" Taani says to her siblings. "Why do Rey and Sharon have more faith in my capabilities than you do?"

"You punched a fucking hole just millimeters away from my ear," Rey reminds her.

"You're also absolutely terrifying, which is saying something considering the fact that it's coming from me because I'm absolutely terrifying," Sharon points out.

"That's all fine and dandy," Kriya drawls, "except Rey and Sharon don't care about your safety and well-being. Exhibit A, he provoked you in a situation where you had to resort to punching the wall dangerously close to his face. You still have the damn bandage on, Taani!"

Taani begins to say something, but she notices Shivam slightly nudge her with his knee, prompting her to instead stop and let him say what he had to say.

"Not to ruin the beautiful sisterly moment you guys have going on here, but just so you know Kriya, I do care about Taani's safety and well-being, more importantly, I care about  _her_ , so just trust me when I say that she knows exactly what she's doing, she wouldn't be our GS otherwise. I get that she's your sister and you want to protect her at every turn, but Taani can take care of herself, and you can't exactly stop her from doing what she wants in this case because right now, you are not Taani's sister, you are her AGS, okay?"

Kriya sighs, and Shivam counts her silence as a win. He then motions for Taani to continue, and she does so, but not before she mouths 'thank you,' at him.

"So, video's going to be done by Saara, and if not Saara, then Vishesh."

"And if not Vishesh…" Sharon trails off, raising an eyebrow.

"Well, Karan is a very well-informed individual, so we'll probably figure something out," Taani shrugs. "As I was saying, other than finding and then convincing people to participate in the charity function, I really think that we should try to get people excited and inform them early on. Principal Shenoy is expecting us to pull this together before New Year's, that gives us nearly seven months to create a surefire way for these students to get the chance that they so desperately seek."

"What are you saying?" asks Swayam.

"I'm saying that maybe we could get some of the media and journalism students together, I know they feel like crap that they're programs are going decently while others that share a similar passion are literally dangling by thread, they're obviously going to want to help, and I know how they can do it."

"How?" questions Rey.

"Well, if y'all would stop interrupting me, I'll be able to actually make my point!" Taani snarks, frustrated, causing Shivam to signal them both to not say another word.

"As I was saying, because of the programs that these guys are in, they are our key to getting the word to people outside St. Louis, we want the board, the people who hold the fates of these students in the palms of their hands to see this as something intriguing and valuable from head on so we have a strong start, we don't want them to show up on the day of just treating this event as if it's another item to be checked off of their to-do list. The media students know how to market, and why I'm suggesting them rather than business students is because business students know how to earn, while media students know how to make. And a handful of upperclassmen in both the media and journalism programs are interning for big news stations and newspapers, they are our key in making sure that people know about this event, and on top of that, this shows that just because we're trying to improve one program doesn't mean that we'll be forgetting about the rest, it shows how everything just goes hand in hand.

When our drama students graduate, they would be nothing without the brilliant directors and writers and filmmakers backing them up. You as dancers know how difficult it is to do what you love without music. All of this, every single field of art works together, they all need each other. That's why for the actual function itself, I think that it would be great if some of the dance and drama students could help out with function. See -"

"You do remember that the dance and drama students aren't the ones that we're trying to help, right?" Rey butts in.

"Yeah, she does," Shivam fires back, his facial expression clearly stating 'didn't I tell you to shut the fuck up, you dipshit?'

"Well, I don't see -"

This time, it's Kriya who's glaring at Rey as she cuts him off. "You would if you let her finish, so _let her finish_ , Rey."

"Go ahead Taani," Swayam tell his sister as even Sharon sends the younger girl a somewhat encouraging smile.

"Thank you," she breathes a sigh of relief. "Like I said before, this may be about helping the art fields that are a part of this one program that doesn't get the help that it deserves, but we can't abandon the other art fields, everything being included only works in our favour, especially because St. Louis is literally known as the dance capital of Mumbai. Yes, we will have actors and we will have dancers, but our main focus will be the writers and the musicians."

Sharon is the first to understand exactly where Taani is coming from. "So the spotlight will technically be on the writers and their original work - these impactful stories or one story that's so beautiful and moving, that the acting and dancing will do nothing to take away from it. The actors and dancers are basically -"

"Clickbait," Shivam finishes, shaking his head in absolute awe, "they are fucking clickbait, you are brilliant, Taani!"

Taani giggles as Shivam engulfs her in a hug, giddy with excitement, the biggest possible grin adorning his face.

"Hai Krishnaji, save it for when I tell you that you're 100% in charge of anything to do with the writers."

Shivam pulls away from the hug, staring down at Taani. "Are you serious?"

"Wow, you are absolutely precious you dork, yes I'm serious!"

"I could actually kiss you right now."

Before Taani could respond, she hears Swayam and Sharon's twin horrified groans of, "Please don't," for entirely different reasons, as Kriya and Rey snort at their brother and best-friend's reactions… again, for entirely different reasons.

Shivam looks at the others sheepishly as Taani tries to bite back a smile. "Sorry guys, I got a little excited."

"Clearly," remarks Kriya, also amused by Shivam's antics. "What do you have planned for the other students Taani?"

"Original music, obviously, written and composed. How's the music portion of the arts program doing nowadays?"

"Worse than the filmmaking portion of the art program," Shivam informs her.

Taani practically has to will herself to not slip into panic mode. "Fine, that's fine, I know music well, as do Arjun and Nisha and Karan for that matter. Also, I'm pretty sure that Nilesh and Simmi both have some sort of musical background, please correct me if I'm wrong, and Nilesh is literally a whiz with lights and sound."

"You hit the nail on the head on that one Freshbrat," says Sharon. "Nilesh can rap, as we all know, but he's also classically trained to play the cello, and Simmi has been taking vocal lessons since she was a kid."

"You play the violin, don't you Taani?" asks Rey. It was an innocent question, and in all honesty, that's what Rey intended for it to be. But his one innocent question changed the entire atmosphere of the room, it changed Taani's entire demeanor.

Swayam and Kriya glance at their sister worriedly, but Taani once again manages to suppress the sheer panic that came dangerously close to overcoming her.

"I haven't played the violin in years," she says, "I'm still a little rusty."

Lies. She stopped playing less than two years ago when she just couldn't take it anymore, but she wasn't going to tell that to Reyaansh Singhania of all people, especially with Sharon Rai Prakash in the room.

"Sorry I asked," Rey says softly, knowing that something was wrong.

"So," Shivam chimes in, attempting to steer the direction of the conversation away from Taani's past, "Taani will be taking care of the music, I'll take care of writing, and Sharon and Kriya can work on the dance and drama departments?"

"Right, and Shivam, maybe bring bhai along with you to talk to the visual art and photography students? Once you get them to come around, bhai can probably take it from there. Maybe take Rey -"

"No," Rey is quick to say.

"What?"

"I'll help you the music. Everyone's pairing up, and two heads are better than one right?"

"Yeah, but bhai and Shivam might need your help, and I'll have Arjun, and Nisha, possibly Karan -"

"Yeah, but  _I'm_ your AGS," Rey points out, quirking an eyebrow.

"So is Kriya!" Taani blurts out. "She can work with me, and you can work with Sharon."

"That's a terrible idea, you know that better than anyone. You always work better with your frenemy than your best friend or your sister."

"Fine! You can work with Kriya, and I'll work with Sharon. The GS and CS, and the two assistant general secretaries, I think that works out perfectly, thank you so much, Rey."

Taani's bright smile is wiped right off her face when Rey reminds her, "Kriya and Sharon are our two dance captains, it makes more sense to pair them off."

Taani groans. "Then you can help them."

"You think those two are going to need  _my_ help?"

"And you think  _I'm_ going need your help?"

"Yes, you literally just said that!"

"As a question, not a statement, Jesus fucking Christ!"

"So I'm totally working with you right?"

"Yes, okay, fine," Taani huffs. "Fuck, you are so infuriating."

"We're gonna' make a great team."

"I hate you so much."

"Best team ever!"

"I literally want to punch you in the face."

Kriya snorts at the statement, gaining her sister's attention.

"I'm sorry, but once upon a time, you were the one defending Rey when  _I_  wanted to punch him in the face. I think you actually said he was  _nice_."

"You said I was nice?!" demands Rey, in complete and utter shock.

"Post fresher's party yes - leave me alone!"

"Rey, you once said that Taani was, and I quote, 'not that bad,' so your smirk makes zero sense," Sharon reminds him as he glares at her.

"Okay, enough," Shivam cuts in, "can we all please just get to work?"

Before anyone could answer, all their phones go off, causing Sharon to remark, "This feels way too much like Pretty Little Liars."

"Also, you'd totally be A," Taani points out, causing Sharon to nod in agreement, not entirely unhappy about the idea.

Kriya simply rolls her eyes at the two, opening her phone to check the message that she just received, eyes widening at what she sees.

"Are you guys -" she begins to ask, only to be cut off by choruses of 'yup,' 'oh yeah' and 'god why.' She then turns her attention to Taani, who immediately locks eyes with her, already grabbing her things and heading for the door.

"Meeting adjourned everyone!" she calls out. "Until tomorrow."

Kriya follows her cousin out the door, as the rest of the student council stays behind, staring dumbfounded at their phones.

* * *

May 5th should be marked as the day that all students of St. Louis have bad days. Vrushika was clearly going through some emotional bullshit, Kriya, Rey, and Shivam all loathed their new positions on student council, Taani begrudgingly had no choice but to accept hers because it's Taani, and Saara…

Saara probably had it worst of all.

Her day started with her brother pushing her off of her bed with all his might.

(Yes she threw a paperweight at him, but that's not the point.)

She was then met with the putrid smell of Sharon's apology breakfast, which alone had her wanting to make nice with her cousin, but she fought through it.

(She ran out the door at lightning speed and puked in their shrubs, po-tay-to po-tah-to.)

Then she walked to college, because Arjun rode off without her and she couldn't handle riding in the same car as Sharon, and bless that it's only a thirty minute walk because one second more and Saara would've puked again, and this time probably on an actual human being like the misogynistic ass from the medical department.

(That actually didn't sound like such a bad, now that she had some time to think about it.)

And of course, her perfectly horrid morning was completed by APS with Hitler didi and- oh what's this? Presentation day? After the month she had, Sigmund Freud and his pedophilic "theories," were the absolute last thing to cross Saara's mind.

(To be honest, she doesn't remember doing shit for this project.)

But Saara sat there, waiting, with only her traitor of a brother and her ex who she's kind of warming up to for company, a full two and a half hours before Professor Ananya called on her and Karan to come to the front of the class so that they could present.

Karan set up the presentation as Saara sent an unimpressed glare their professor's way, one that looked eerily similar to Sharon's resting bitch face.

Arjun, immediately picking up on his twin's mood, recognizing the look on her face in a matter of seconds, signals to Karan to get his attention.

Karan stares at Arjun strangely, raising an eyebrow in confusion, then turning to Saara, Arjun's flailing finally starting to make sense. He discreetly gets her attention, motioning for her to chill the fuck out.

Saara rolls her eyes, putting a fake smile on her face and fluttering her eyelashes, causing Karan to groan, ready to beg for extra credit assignments to make up for the zero he'd get on this one.

Karan tried, he really did. He didn't read off his notes, tried not to be monotone and most importantly, he tried really fucking hard to keep a straight face as he told his classmates about theories created by a pedophilic, sexist, homophobe - and Saara wasn't exactly helping the situation!

She was tired and high on negative emotions, causing her utter hatred for Freud to skyrocket. There was malice in her voice, aggravation in her tone, and anger set ablaze in her eyes. To say that Saara Rai Prakash was not a happy camper was putting things lightly. She was furious, if the crumpled papers in her hand were anything to go by.

And then Professor Ananya thought that goading a furious Rai Prakash - one that was known as 'the calm one' in the family - was actually a good idea.

Yeah, if you want a volcano to erupt.

"Miss Rai Prakash, if you're deliberately trying to go out of your way to be petty and fail this assignment just because you didn't get your way, you are certainly on the right track," the professor snipes.

And kaboom goes the volcano!

"You know what I am trying to do,  _Anu Ma'am_?" Saara sneers at the elder woman, a twitch in her eye, a tick in her jaw. "I'm trying to understand how the fuck someone hired you to teach this course?"

That was when half the class began to film the shitstorm that just hit their classroom, and the other half feared for 'stubborn in the face of stupid' (Saara's new nickname). That was when Arjun and Karan groaned, faces digging into their palms, knowing that this was inevitable, and that was when Hitler didi's unreadable expression shifted, unbeknownst to her class.

"You're a professor of social science, that includes psychology, so you better than anyone else should know how Freud completely sent the psychological field backward rather than forwards. The man thought cocaine was the cure to end all mental illnesses for fucks' sake! _This_ is who you want your students to learn about, to care about?! He's a literal pedophile who thinks that three-year-olds are subconsciously obsessed with incest - his entire theory was based on sexual desires being present inside of us since birth, where he went out of his way to sexualize newborns, everything from sucking their thumbs to breastfeeding. He classified the sexual abuse of children as seduction and desire, he tried to 'rid' his own daughter of her lesbianism, there is an honest to goodness book about him titled "Why Freud Was Wrong," and to top it all of, all of his work, Freud himself, has been discredited! Despite all of that, you wanted us to find something valuable to share about him with our peers?!

Do you find joy in terrorizing us or is this just about you being yet another professor who hates her job because as we all know, those who can't do,  _teach_. I wanted to take this course because I hoped and prayed that the person who taught me would me would like it enough themselves to actually teach me something that I carry with me for the rest for my college education, whether or not I continue to take the course. But instead, I got you - someone who seems to care more about making her students miserable and turning what was supposed to be the most interesting course into the most excruciating one that literally no one ever looks forward to. So yes, Anu Ma'am, I am going to be and I am going to act like a brat, but not because I didn't get my way, but because you are single-handedly ruining my entire college experience."

Saara lets light huff of air when she's done her rant, slightly out of breath, the gravity of the situation just now dawning her.

Well, she's screwed.

And then, the last thing that anyone could have even thought of expecting to happen, happened.

Professor Ananya Malik got up from her seat, and started to clap.

Maybe she's not screwed…?

The entire class, Saara included, looks at their professor like she's finally lost her goddamn mind as they watch get closer and closer to Saara.

Professor Ananya stops at a one-arm distance from where Saara's standing, and happily decrees, "Congratulations Saara, you just saved your class from an entire year of excruciating pain and terror."

"Huh?" is the only word that Saara's shock would allow her mouth to let out, as Professor Ananya then moves past her and takes a seat on her desk.

"Well, all great social scientists conduct experiments, do they not?"

"We were an experiment?!" Saara cries out, unable to process what was happening.

"I don't think that's legal," Karan adds.

"No, it's perfectly legal, I got approval from the board and everything," Professor Ananya informs him, "Also, have you met Principal Shenoy?"

Choruses of "ah," "that's true," and "point taken," could be heard throughout the room.

"Wait," a student at the back rings out, "what even is the experiment?"

"Great question!" Professor Ananya exclaims. "So you see, when I first started my career nearly fifteen years ago, I noticed that there were always two distinct type of teaching styles, and three types of responses to these teaching styles. There is Professor Meera's style of teaching - engaging, innovative and absolutely being catered towards the success of her students. The two of us are not related, I would just like to point out to you all, although I absolutely wish that we were. Anyways, that aside, then you have the second style of teaching, the one that I tend to use initially, entirely based on fear and intimidation.

The response to Professor Meera's style of teaching has one response - a positive and accepting reaction from the students due to the environment that they are taught in. Then there are two responses to my initial teaching style - there is the 'it is what it is' response of students who just want to pass and get the course over it and there is Miss Rai Prakash's response, that of someone who actually cares about the course itself and wants to learn rather than simply earn a passing grade.

So after my first year of teaching here, I approached the board with the idea for this social and psychological experiment. I would use this negative and counter-productive teaching style to see how long it would take for a student, especially one like Miss Rai Prakash here, to actually fight for a change. The board can't very well control every single professor's teaching style, but the data I've collected in the past helps them to mold future teachers and professors on finding more positive and productive teaching styles."

"So what?" Arjun calls out. "Saara's the first person to actually crack under your fake teaching style?"

"The first since your cousin Anya back in 2008, yes."

Someone in the middle row actually gasps. "That was nearly eight years ago!"

"So how do people remain unaware of this experiment?" Abhishek Mehra asks from the first row, curiosity evident on his face.

"Well, in the past, students who have seen through with this experiment have been so intrigued by it, like the good social scientists they are, have chosen to remain silent on the details of it in order for it to continue year after year. That's why none of you knew that my other freshman class saw right through this experiment within the first week. Actually, it was more Miss Nisha Sen, but still."

"Wait, actually?" demands Saara.

"Yes. Your peers in the other class have been aware of this experiment for nearly a month now, and they were all curious to know if you all could do the same and how long it would take you. So if you have friends in the other class and they're exchanging money, it's because there have been multiple bets going on surrounding this class's success rate."

"What about previous students who haven't been able to follow through with the experiment? How do they find out?" Saara inquires.

"They simply don't," Professor Ananya informs her with a shrug. "Some students may very well go years without knowing anything about this experiment."

"So why do this experiment?" Karan asks. " _Your_  reason can't very well be to gather data."

"You're right Mr. Modi. I wanted to do this experiment to show all you students that going along with everything that someone in a position of authority or power says is not the best, and certainly not the only option. Just look at America! They have a creamsicle for a president, and the majority of the country is not afraid to stand up to him. This mentality of professors and teachers and everyone in-between being all-knowing is ridiculous. Some of my colleagues are morons, and by the end of the year, certain students can probably teach their classes with the utmost ease. If you submit to a counter-productive teaching method that sets a negative environment for you, you are only hurting your own education. If you think that rolling over is the best option, it's not. This experiment is supposed to be learning experience for students like you to learn that there's absolutely nothing wrong with questioning authority or anyone in power early so that you don't learn things the hard way later on in life, like many of the students who have not been able to see through this experiment will and have."

"That's actually brilliant," Saara remarks, in absolute awe like the rest of her peers are.

Professor Ananya smiles at the younger girl. "Thank you, Miss Rai Prakash, your input is always appreciated. By the way, you have to stay after class today and tomorrow for detention, not for mouthing off because that was the whole point of all this, but for cursing at me since it's college policy."

For a split second, Saara opens her mouth to protest, but instead shrugs and admits, "That's fair, I completely understand."

"Wonderful!" Professor Ananya exclaims. "Now, since class has been over for the last fifteen minutes, feel free to leave or stay here and explain to your dumbstruck friends that are outside my door as to what just happened. Have a nice day!" And with that, Professor Ananya, once known as Hitler didi, backflips over her desk in order to grab her bag, and gleefully skips out the door as the rest of the class, save for Saara, Karan, and Arjun, follow.

Seeing that her best friends are still frozen at the door, Saara walks over to Kriya and Taani and grabs their hands, pulling them inside the classroom and having them sit down as Karan and Arjun look on in amusement.

"Are you guys trying out for roles in the next Ice Age, or should I call the nurse?" Saara snarks, arms crossed over her chest, one eyebrow raised.

Taani is the first to speak.

"You're alive?"

"Pinch me, I think I'm still dreaming," Kriya sighs dramatically, still in shock, as Arjun gladly shoots a rubber band at her head.

"What the hell, Arjun? I said pinch me, not attack me with your school supplies."

Karan, happy to oblige, lightly pinches Kriya, earning him a smack on the arm from his victim for doing so.

"If the two of you are done assaulting my sister," Taani's booming voice causes both boys to stop what they're doing and suddenly decide to turn into statues as if Taani was fucking Medusa, "then di and I would both be delighted to know exactly what the hell went on here while we were gone."

Saara, Karan, and Arjun all speak at once, excited to explain Saara's outburst and Professor Ananya's experiment, talking over one another and using over-the-top hand gestures.

Except Kriya and Taani understood them perfectly.

"So all you got was two days of detention?" Kriya asks Saara.

"Pretty much, yeah."

"And what about your grade for the project you just butchered?" Taani points out.

"Let's just say that I'm not as worried about it as I was about half an hour ago," Karan tells her.

"Forget that!" Saara butts in. "What happened with student council?"

"You are now looking at the new general secretary of St. Louis," Taani concedes. "Di and Rey are my assistants, and Shivam and bhai are Sharon's."

"Yes, because that is going to end so well," Arjun surmises.

"Ignoring you," Taani sings. She then turns her attention back to Saara and says, "Okay, so we don't have a lot of the details worked out as of yet, but would you be willing to do a video on behalf of the nonexistent - hopefully one day existent - film students?"

Saara's eyes light up the same way Taani's did when Principal Shenoy pitched the idea of the charity function to her. "Yes, absolutely, of course!"

"And you're sure you won't have too much on your plate with dance and school?" Karan makes a point to remind, knowing how Saara can sometimes just dive headfirst into certain situations and somehow has never been able to discover how to say no.

Saara bites her lip nervously, knowing that Karan was right. "Do you guys have a backup option?"

"Vishesh the creep who doesn't know how to stop leering at my sister," Kriya deadpans.

Saara glances at Taani, and then back at Kriya. "She could take him."

"Thank you!" Taani exclaims, sending a grateful smile Saara's way.

"Yeah, and it's not like Vishesh would do anything to Taani," Karan points out, completely missing the desperate glances Taani sent his way for him to keep his damn mouth shut. "He's had plenty of easy opportunities to, and Taani's still out here fighting the good fight."

Taani immediately regrets not keeping her promise of killing him last week.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Kriya demands, utterly confused.

"Yeah, what's he talking about?" questions Saara, looking at her best friend curiously.

Realization dawns on Karan much too late for him to live after this conversation.

"They don't -"

"Nope!" Taani snaps, glaring at him as he gulps.

Arjun, immediately putting two and two together, grins. "You and Vishesh -"

"Not. Another. Word."

"I'm so confused," Kriya says to no one particular, with Saara nodding in agreement.

"Good, please stay that way," Taani speaks at lightning speed, something she tends to do when she's a nervous trainwreck of a human being. Glaring at Arjun she warns, "Don't say a word, or else you will not live to see sunset this evening." She then spares one last glance Karan's way and growls, "I will deal with you later," before bolting out the door.

As if finally noticing Taani's clear signs of frustration and embarrassment of being put on the spot like that, Saara sends a glare of her own Karan's way.

"I didn't know!" Karan protests, causing Saara to roll her eyes.

"Vishesh though? Seriously?"

"I know! She's so-" Karan mimes his head exploding, mouthing the word 'wow,' before his face scrunches up in disgust as he continues, "and he's so-"

"Well actually -" Arjun begins to say, but Saara cuts him off immediately, shouting, "I don't want to hear it!" as she covers her ears.

"How would you even know?" asks Karan.

"Bisexual, remember?" Arjun tells him, as Karan lets out a soft 'ah.'

"I'm still so confused," Kriya tells them.

"That's probably for the best, Kri," Karan tells her as he grabs his things. "Let's go see if Nisha made her special sandwiches for you and then completely forget that this conversation happened."

"And let's not bring it up in front of your brother, kay?" Arjun suggests, intending to be helpful as Kriya looks even more confused, causing Saara to slap her twin upside the head.

"Ow! I think I actually miss the paperweight," Arjun grumbles as Saara rolls her eyes.

"Wait, what paperweight?" inquires Kriya, attention completely diverted as Saara and Karan sneak a hi-5.

Just another day at St. Louis...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Musical Inspiration: Everybody Talks (the Glee version), They Don't Know About Us by One Direction, Teri Meri Dosti by Darshan Raval and Suyyash Rai (it's a really sweet song with a really cute video, please check it out!), and Cake By The Ocean by DNCE


End file.
